Thread by @MKG_II_0

Missionary Conspire to damage India & it's economy 👇

How shutting down 1 plant turned India from copper exporter to importer in under 2 yrs?

1) Sterlite Copper’s Thoothukudi plant ws shut down by TN govt after resident protests in May 2018. India has since become net importer.

2) India’s copper imports have risen sharply in the last 1-1/2. So sharply that a country which in 2017-18, was among the top 5 exporters of copper cathodes became a net importer beginning 2018-19, according to @CimGOI data.

3) What changed? Vedanta subsidiary Sterlite Copper’s plant in Thoothukudi (earlier known as Tuticorin) was shut down in May 2018 on the orders of the TN govt, after violent protests by residents, who alleged that the factory was a health hazard.

4) Net importer after 18 yrs - Before-and-after figures tell a story — in 2017-18, India exported nearly 378 kilo tonnes of copper cathodes — obtained after copper ore is smelted & refined.

5) After closure of Thoothukudi plant, had a refining capacity of 400 kilo tonnes, India exports plunged to 48 kilo tonnes ($300 million) in 2018-19. In first half of FY 2019-20, India has exported only 7 kilo tonnes of copper, worth $42 million.

6) India had imported just 36 kilo tonnes of copper cathodes in 2017-18, worth $243 million. It went upto 84 kilo tonnes worth $551 million in 2018-19, while in first half of 2019-20, India has already imported 70 kilo tonnes of copper cathodes, amounting to $447 million.

7) India had exported nearly $1.5 billion of copper cathodes to China in 2017-18, but figure fell to $226 million in 2018-19, 85% drop. In 1st half of this yr, India only exported $39 million worth of copper cathodes to China.

8) Ratings agency CARE said in a Sept 2019 report: “Prod. fell by 46.1% during FY19 due to permanent closure of Sterlite’s 400KT copper factory in Thoothukudi (formerly known as Tuticorin) on 28 May 2018. Tuticorin smelter accounts for 40% of India’s copper smelting capacity.

9) “India used to be a net exporter of copper cathodes till FY18. Now with the Tuticorin smelter closure, drop in domestic prod has led to the domino effect of increasing imports & decreasing its exports. India has become a net importer of refined copper after 18 yrs.”

10) India was among top 5 exporters of copper cathodes until 2 yrs back.
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Source:
theprint.in/economy/how-sh…