India
The fiscal year FY 10 is a landmark year for Tata Steel’s Indian operations with an outstanding performance across all its Units and Divisions.
There was also a noticeable improvement in most of the operating Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) of all the units like coke rate, fuel rate, specific raw material consumption etc. coupled with customer focused initiatives which further strengthened the product and delivery systems and processes.
The stupendous all around performance supported by strong domestic demand is reflected in the significant increase in the EBITDA margin of H2 FY 10 which was 44% as compared to EBITDA margin of 33% in H1 FY 10. The Company’s turnover increased by 12% to Rs. 7,339 crores in Q4 FY 10 as compared to Q4 FY 09 and by 15% as compared to Q3 FY 10.
Safety
In line with the Group’s vision of achieving 0.4 Lost Time Injury Frequency Rate (LTIFR) by 2012, there was a significant improvement in Tata Steel India’s safety performance in FY 10 with a 30% reduction in LTIFR as compared to the previous year’s. Against a plan of 0.6 LTIFR in FY 10, the actual LTIFR dropped to 0.56 in this period due to implementation of many process related safety initiatives.
Record performances
The Company achieved best ever production of hot metal (7.23 million tonnes), crude steel (6.56 million tonnes) and saleable steel (6.44 million tonnes) registering an impressive increase of 16% for hot metal and crude steel production and an increase of 20% for saleable steel production. The newly commissioned ‘H’ Blast Furnace achieved a remarkable milestone by producing 3.07 million tonnes in the first full year of its operation registering an impressive increase of 23% as compared to its rated capacity of 2.5 million tonnes.
In line with the capacity enhancement plan of Tata Steel, the capacity of one of the smaller blast furnaces, the ‘C’ Blast Furnace was upgraded from 0.4 mtpa to 0.7 mtpa through in-house efforts and was commissioned in September 2009. It is the first blast furnace in the world to incorporate the Gimbal Top technology for the raw material charging system.
The superior performance of the Ironmaking units was aptly supported by the Raw Material Division. The dispatches from Ores Mines and Quarries (OMQ) Division to the Steel Works was 11.08 million tonnes and registered a substantial increase of 18% as compared to the dispatch of 9.42 million tonnes in FY 09. The West Bokaro Division also recorded the highest ever clean coal production of 2.14 million tonnes.
The downstream processes also kept pace with the increase in upstream production and new records were set in all the rolling mills. The Hot Strip Mill produced 3.65 million tonnes (previous record: 3.27 million tonnes in FY 08), the Cold Rolling Mill output rose to 1.56 million tonnes (previous record: 1.53 million tonnes in FY 09) and the New Bar Mill registered a production of 0.67 million tonnes (previous record: 0.61 million tonnes). The overall sales registered an impressive increase of 18% at 6.17 million tonnes.
Making a mark in the marketplace
The Flat Products Division retained its leadership position in the Indian automotive segment with a 42% market share. A new brand “Galvano Zero Spangle” was launched for the first time in India for appliance, panel, bus body and the general engineering segment. To increase the market reach, several initiatives were taken. 25 stores of Steeliumzone, an exclusive retail store of TATA Steelium CR coils and sheets and 100 stores of Shaktee Sansaar that retail TATA SHAKTEE GC sheets were opened in 2009-10.
The Long Products Division with its highest rebar sales at 1.56 million tonnes was the biggest rebar player in the country. A new grade of FE 500 D was launched for the first time in India having lower impurities of phosphorous and sulphur under the brand called TATA TISCON 500 D. The Division also branded its Cut and Bend Centre rebars as TATA TISCON Readybuild. The TATA TISCON brand was acknowledged as a consumer superbrand in the construction rebar category by survey concluded by Superbrands India Pvt Ltd.
The Tubes Division, a strategic business unit of Tata Steel, achieved its highest ever annual sales at 3.5 lakh metric tonnes recording a 10% growth in sales over last year. It continues to pioneer the Closed Structural Business, with landmark structures being built using TATA Structura which crossed the 3 lakh tonnes landmark this year.
In Precision Tubes, the Division stabilised production and the supply of Hydroformed cradles for the Nano, and substantially increased its share (40% YoY) of High Precision Cold Drawn tubes for Propellor Shaft, Drive Shaft and Front Fork tubes. It continues to hold a leading position in the Boiler Segment inspite of intensifying competition. TATA Pipes, the flagship brand continues to dominate in the plumbing, irrigation, industrial and firefighting segments. The Division has now stabilised its newest high speed narrow tube mill in the first quarter of the year itself and implemented a state-of-the-art air wiping system to enable far finer coating control for its galvanised products.
The Global Wires Business of the Group is amongst the largest steel wire manufacturers in the world (and largest in India, Thailand & Sri Lanka). In the last year, the Wire Division in India restructured itself by relocating its operations from Mumbai to Tarapur and to Indian Steel & Wire Products Co. Jamshedpur. The Division was the first to brand its galvanized wires for the retail segment under the TATA Wiron brand.