India’s competition regulator has concluded an extensive investigation into alleged collusion among the country’s largest steel manufacturers, linking Tata Steel, JSW Steel, and state-owned producers Steel Authority of India Limited (SAIL) and Rashtriya Ispat Nigam Limited (RINL) to coordinated pricing and output strategies over several years.
According to findings reviewed by Reuters, the Competition Commission of India (CCI) determined that the four companies exchanged commercially sensitive information and adjusted production levels in ways that reduced supply and influenced market prices between 2018 and 2023. The probe stands out as a major competition enforcement action in India’s steel market
The investigation forms part of a broader cartel probe in which the CCI found evidence that 28 steel companies engaged in price coordination. While the commission does not publicly disclose detailed cartel findings under its procedural rules, companies implicated in such cases may face substantial financial penalties.
As part of its inquiry, the regulator examined industry communications obtained during coordinated searches carried out in 2022. Investigators analysed numerous WhatsApp group discussions involving market participants, along with detailed pricing, sales, and production data. Although the report does not attribute any messages directly to executives of the four major producers, it concludes that information circulated within these groups closely aligned with the companies’ subsequent pricing decisions.
The CCI found that the four firms collectively held a dominant position in the Indian steel market, accounting for more than 44% of total supply. During at least one financial year, investigators identified simultaneous reductions in production volumes by the companies, which the report characterised as deliberate supply management rather than independent commercial responses.
Internal documentation further reinforced the commission’s conclusions. Materials prepared by RINL for government review indicated that the company routinely benchmarked its prices against those of Tata Steel, JSW, and SAIL when setting its own rates. Other internal records referred explicitly to industry-wide production curbs, which the regulator viewed as corroborating evidence of coordinated behaviour.
The investigation also identified specific market signals disseminated among industry participants. Messages circulating in 2020 and 2022 referred to planned price increases by major producers of construction-grade steel, suggesting advance awareness of competitors’ pricing actions.
Senior leadership figures at the four companies have been named in connection with the alleged conduct, including Tata Steel’s chief executive and JSW’s managing director, along with several former heads of the state-owned firms. The companies were formally asked in October to submit financial information relevant to potential penalty calculations and to present any final objections to the findings.
Tata Steel has rejected the allegations, stating that it sets prices independently based on market conditions. The other three companies have not publicly commented, though the investigation report notes that their executives denied engaging in collusive conduct during the inquiry.
The CCI is currently reviewing the investigative findings at the decision-making level. The commission has the authority either to impose fines or to dismiss the conclusions reached by investigators. Given India’s position as the world’s second-largest steel producer and the sector’s importance to national infrastructure development, the case is expected to have far-reaching implications for competition enforcement and corporate conduct in heavy industry.