Hyderabad, Oct 09: South India is poised to play an important role in India’s next phase of steel growth. With an installed crude steel capacity of 46 million tonnes and production of 31 MnT in FY2026, the region has a strong industrial base to build on as India advances towards its 300 MnT steel capacity ambition by 2030, according to BigMint, India’s commodities market intelligence firm. These opportunities were at the centre of the third edition of Future.Steel focusing on South, organised by BigMint and co-hosted by the Telangana Iron & Steel Manufacturers Association at The Westin, Hyderabad.
The event was supported by the Federation of Telangana Chambers of Commerce and Industry and the Karnataka Sponge Iron Manufacturers Association. The National Institute of Secondary Steel Technology served as the knowledge partner, while Quesrow Research & Strategy Co. was the research partner.
The conference brought together 250+ participants representing 150 companies across 17 states, along with 30+ speakers from across the steel value chain. A key highlight was the launch of BigMint’s flagship regional market-intelligence report, “The Structural Gap,” during the inaugural session, focusing on Telangana’s role in the evolving steel ecosystem and opportunities for regional investment.
The inaugural session featured Mr. Vivek Nishant Nath, Director, NMDC Limited; Mr. G.L. Gupta, Group Chief Procurement Officer, MEIL; Mr. K.K. Maheshwari, President, FTCCI; Mr. Vinod Kumar Agarwal, VP, FTCCI, Secretary General, TISMA and MD, MPL Group; Mr. Prakash Goenka, MD, Devashree Ispat Ltd; and Mr. Anurag Agarwal, Executive Director, MS Agarwal Foundries Pvt. Ltd. The discussion covered regional investment, policy priorities, raw-material availability, manufacturing opportunities and the role of South India in India’s expanding steel ecosystem.
Mr. K.K. Maheshwari emphasised the need for continued government engagement on policy matters and energy costs, which remain important considerations for steelmakers. Mr. Vinod Kumar Agarwal highlighted the opportunity to strengthen South India’s manufacturing base, supported by improved logistics, cleaner technologies and infrastructure demand. Mr. Vivek Nishant Nath brought the raw-material perspective to the discussion, highlighting resource availability as an important factor in supporting future steel production. Mr. Anurag Agarwal underlined the importance of consistent product quality and process standards as infrastructure projects become more complex.
The programme examined raw-material security, regional demand and supply, infrastructure-led consumption, and the role of credible domestic price benchmarks in procurement, contract pricing and settlement. Dedicated discussions covered green-steel certification, energy efficiency, mid-sized integrated steel plants and AI-led business-process automation, with participation from companies including JSW Steel, Tata International, Lloyds Metals & Energy, MSPL, Jai Raj Ispat and Clariant Power System.
“South India has an important role to play in India’s evolving steel growth story. Better visibility into regional demand, pricing and investment opportunities can help businesses make informed decisions and strengthen the wider value chain,” said Sumit Agrawal, Director, BigMint.
By bringing together producers, buyers, raw-material suppliers and technology providers, Future.Steel aims to advance dialogue on the opportunities and constraints shaping South India’s steel industry as India’s capacity expands and the sector moves towards cleaner, more efficient and competitive production.
BigMint is India’s commodities market intelligence firm, providing price assessments, market data, research and consulting across ferrous and non-ferrous metals, scrap recycling, coal and energy, logistics, cement, polymers and agriculture.
