Bring iron ore freight at par with coal: Steel Ministry to Railways

13 February 2017

Steel Ministry wants the freight rate of iron ore at par with that of coal and has taken up the matter with Railways, Parliament was informed today.

“The Ministry of Steel has taken up with the Ministry of Railways the issue of bringing the freight of iron ore at par with that of coal,” Minister of State for steel Vishnu Deo Sai said in a written reply to Rajya Sabha.

The minister further said no changes have been proposed in the current budget with regard to the Clean Energy Cess.

It was increased from Rs 200 per tonne of coal to Rs 400 per tonne in the budget 2016-17.

He added that consultations are made with other ministries with regard to growth-oriented policies.

Conceding to the long standing demand of industry, the Railways Ministry had earlier abolished the dual freight rate policy for transportation of iron ore.

Under the dual freight policy, transportation costs for iron ore or iron ore pellets meant for export were higher than that for loadings meant for domestic use.

The dual rate had not helped railways with several unscrupulous traders diverting stocks marked for the domestic market to ports for export.

Source – ET