Indian manufacturers have asked the government to allow them to continue to work during the 21-day total quarantine, announced on March 24, citing a law that defines their activities as "basic services."
Secretary, Ministry of steel of India, Binoy Kumar asks to allow the plants to continue to produce, supply and distribute steel and steel raw materials during a nationwide quarantine, as permitted by Law regarding maintenance of basic services, 1981, which identifies any enterprise engaged in the production supply or distribution of coal, electricity, steel and fertilizer as the "basic services".
According to the Secretary, stop the metallurgical enterprises may lead to irreversible consequences associated with damage to plants and machinery.
Blast furnace may be the most "bottleneck" during the quarantine. Blast furnace accounts for about half of total steel production in India in the period from April 2019 to February 2020 was 100,78 million tons.
Sudden stop of blast furnaces can lead to cooling and solidification of hot metal, which is usually at 1 200-1 500 °C inside the furnace, which leads to irreversible damage of the refractory and cooling elements.
Ministry were also requests to remove the restrictions on integrated and induction or electric arc furnaces (EAF), as well as on the movement of people and materials by rail, road and waterways.
Large state-owned steel plants have not closed, and probably will continue work in a usual mode the best of logistics and personnel.
"the Situation is uncertain. The supply chain is a major problem for the management of the plants," said managing Director of Jindal Steel and Power V. R. Sharma.
Recall that the "ArcelorMittal Krivoy Rog" predupredili about a possible social disaster. Which will come if you enter a total quarantine with a stop of industrial enterprises in Ukraine.
