The Indian government is set to approach Australia to ensure a consistent supply of coking coal, a crucial raw material in steel production, to assist steel mills grappling with a scarcity of supplies and escalating prices. Sources familiar with the matter revealed that Nagendra Nath Sinha, the highest-ranking official at India's federal Ministry of Steel, plans to meet with Philip Green, Australia's high commissioner to India, to discuss India's coking coal requirements. The sources, comprising two Indian government officials and two industry executives, mentioned that the meeting between Sinha and Green is anticipated to occur on Friday. However, they preferred to remain anonymous as they lacked authorization to engage with the media.

Australia currently constitutes more than half of India's coking coal imports, which total approximately 70 million metric tons annually. Both the steel ministry and the Australian High Commission have not responded immediately to emails seeking comment.

Amidst inconsistent weather conditions affecting coking coal supplies from Australia, Indian steel mills have sought alternative sourcing from countries like Russia, aiming to benefit from comparatively lower prices. Nevertheless, major Indian steelmakers heavily depend on Australian imports, particularly for specific grades of coking coal. Amarendu Prakash, Chairman of the government-backed Steel Authority of India (SAIL), expressed a desire to increase coking coal procurement from Russia due to its cost-effectiveness, as mentioned last week. Aside from Australia and Russia, India also imports coking coal from the United States.

In recent times, Australian coking coal prices surged by 50%, surpassing $350 per metric ton due to various factors, including maintenance disruptions, reduced supplies from Queensland, and slower railway operations. Officials informed Reuters last month that Indian mills were contemplating price hikes across various steel grades in response to the escalating costs of coking coal.