The Indian government is considering including more inland container depots (ICDs) that may be permitted to handle containerized imported unshredded scrap, a senior government official had said.
The government official stated, that, first of all, the ICD located at Raipur in central India will be permitted to handle containerized imported unshredded scrap to relieve the raw material needs of the large number of direct reduced iron (DRI) plants located in around the region and accounting for around 30 percent of the country’s production of DRI. Scrap demand from DRI units for their induction furnaces in the region is estimated at 250,000 mt per year.
Containerized scrap imports are permitted by the Indian federal government at only a few designated ports and ICDs across the country owing to security risks including the presence of explosive materials, hazardous chemicals and radioactive substances in scrap shipments.
However, the government official said permission to import scrap by the Raipur ICD will be subject to the Chhattisgarh state government approval and the ICD authority adherence to stipulated conditions including establishing effective mechanisms for security and inspection of scrap consignments into the region.