Union Minister of Steel and Heavy Industries HD Kumaraswamy will launch 'PLI scheme 1.1' for the steel industry, the Ministry of Steel said in a release on Sunday. Applications for the scheme will be invited during an event scheduled at Hall No. 1, Vigyan Bhavan, Maulana Azad Road, New Delhi, on January 6, 2025, the release added.
The concept of Production-Linked Incentives (PLI) was conceived during the global lockdowns of 2020, emphasising the need to boost domestic manufacturing. Initially launched for three sectors, the PLI scheme was later extended to include steel in November 2020. Steel Ministry's PLI has attracted a commitment in investment of Rs 27,106 crore, direct employment of 14,760 and estimated production of 7.90 million tonnes of 'Specialty Steel' identified in the scheme. As of November 2024, companies have already invested Rs 18,300 crore and generated over 8,660 in employment. Ministry of steel has been interacting regularly with the participating companies and based on feedback, it was felt that there was a scope to notify the scheme again to attract more participation, the release added.According to the Index of Eight Core Industries (ICI) data recently released by the Ministry of Commerce and Industry, the steel production (weight: 17.92 per cent) increased by 4.8 per cent in November, 2024 over November, 2023. Its cumulative index increased by 5.9 per cent during April to November, 2024-25 over corresponding period of the previous year. The Government has taken decisive steps to enhance the industry's environmental sustainability. Ministry of Steel is preparing 'Green Steel Mission' with an estimated cost of Rs 15000 Crore for helping the Steel Industry to reduce carbon emission and progress towards the Net Zero Target. The Mission includes PLI Scheme for Green Steel, incentives for use of renewable energy and mandates for Government agencies to buy Green Steel. The National Green Hydrogen Mission, spearheaded by the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy, integrates the steel sector into the broader goal of producing and using green hydrogen, contributing to the decarbonisation of steel production. The Ministry has released the Taxonomy for Green Steel on December 12, 2024 to provide standards for defining and categorising the low emission steel, facilitating the green transition of the steel industry. It provides a framework for production of green steel, creation of market for green steel and seeking financial support. (ANI)
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