Tata Ryerson readying to compete with foreign cos
The Financial Express — September 1, 2005

Tata Ryerson Ltd, a 50:50 venture between Tata Steel and Ryerson Tull of the US, is gearing up for competition from foreign players planning to enter India even as it mulls an international foray. The company, which processes and cuts sheets of steel into specific requirements of user industries, has also installed facilities to meet the demand of the construction industry for shaped steel rods used in concrete casting.

Sandipan Chakrabortty, managing director, said Tata Ryerson is an irreplaceable bridge between steelmakers like Tata Iron & Steel Co and Steel Authority of India Ltd (SAIL) and users like manufacturers of cars, white goods and others. These users require sheets indifferent sizes of shapes but in quantities that are not economical for the big producers. Tata Ryerson has a 70% market share in the organised sector. "Many foreign players are also looking at the processing market, but we are confident of taking on the competition," he said.

"With Indian steelmakers and foreign players lining up a host of new projects, we expect demand for our products to boom," Mr Chakrabortty said. He said the industry also has plenty of small players and even operations that are run from sheds with child labour. "But today's consumers are ready to pay extra for quality and these players cannot meet the need," he said. Tata Ryerson has set a goal of reaching a capacity of 2 million tonne by 2010, when most of the new steel projects are expected to come on line.

It also plans a plate processing new unit in the south, either in Chennai or in Bangalore, but is undecided about the final location because of the issue of value-added tax. As for the international forays, he said the Tatas are content with the huge demand in India, but Ryerson is keen to leverage its joint venture's skills in markets like China or Africa where it is difficult to post Europeans and local skills are inadequate.

Set up in 1997, Tata Ryerson began with a hot-rolled (HR) coil processing facility at Jamshedpur, and followed up with the second one at Ranjangaon near Pune in 1999. The first cold- rolled (CR) coil facility came up in Jamshedpur in 2000. Tata Ryerson has set up India's first fully-automated rebar processing facility, at Faridabad. This unit, which can bend and twist torsion steel bars or ribbed bars into lengths and shapes sought by builders, will supply the booming national capital region. "In another five years, even the average house-builder can go to our site and order his requirements," Mr Chakrabortty said. "Builders will be able to save considerably on labour costs and time."