Mostafa-Hakim Group, commonly known as HM steel and industry in Bangladesh, aims to expand its annual rebar production facility by 400,000mt in Chattogram’s Karnaphuli district. The announcement comes after the successful launch of its Golden Ispat facility with 200,000mt annual steel capacity last year. HM steel plans to invest BDT1,000 crore or $117mn for the new rebar plant.
HM steel has an annual capacity to produce 400,000mt of billet and other semi-finished products. The company also produces finished steel products such as MS rods, angles, square bars, flat bars and channels.
Bangladesh’s scrap imports to double
With rising capacities, the country’s total steel production capacity is estimated to cross 8mn mt, while the current annual domestic steel demand is 6.5mn mt. Bangladeshi steelmakers consume 7mn mt of ferrous scrap, annually, of which around 2.5mn mt is fulfilled by shipbreaking operations, while the rest is imported.
Mega rural and urban infrastructure development projects announced by the government are expected to boost steel consumption and scrap consumption is forecast to almost double in the next 3-4 years. Traders expect increased imports of scrap amid growing demand from the country’s rebar makers.
Earlier BSRM and AKS had announced capacity expansions. GPH steel expanded its capacity to 900,000mn mt as it resumed facility towards the end of 2020, but the new facility is yet to reach installed capacity and production is limited at 500,000mn mt due to slow steel demand amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
Post the expansion project, HM steel would constitute 7.5-8pc of the country’s total steel capacity.
($1=BDT84.78)