Financial prudence powers SAIL’s growth ambition
Team News Riveting
New Delhi, February 12
Steel Authority of India Limited (SAIL) is charting its growth story with a clear vision: to combine financial prudence with market expansion, while deleveraging to provide enough room for funding future CAPEX ambitions.
At the heart of this approach is a disciplined balance – reducing debt, optimising costs and simultaneously intensifying sales outreach to capture the opportunities of a growing steel market. Reflecting this ambition, the company has set a sales target close to 20.0 million tonnes for FY25-26, up from around 17.9 million tonnes in FY24-25, underscoring its intent to translate strategy into measurable growth.
This theme of prudence and foresight was echoed during the Q3 FY26 earnings con-call, where Director (Finance) with additional charge as Director (Commercial), Dr. A.K. Panda, highlighted the company’s achievements. He noted that debt reduction has been substantial with ₹5,000 crore being repaid in the nine-month period Apr–Dec 25. Debt as on 31.12.2025 was ₹24,852 crore, followed by reduction of another ₹2,000 crore in January 2026. This disciplined deleveraging has lowered finance costs and created headroom for growth investments. “Operational efficiency, inventory liquidation, cost optimisation and strong treasury management,” Dr Panda explained, “all add up to better financial prudence.”
The company’s strategy has already begun to show results. Sales volumes surged by 16.3% in the nine-month period (Apr’25 – Dec’25) of FY25-26, driven by proactive marketing initiatives and deeper engagement with retail and new customer segments. This push took total sales to 16.6 million tonnes between April’25– January’26, while also enabling significant inventory liquidation. By reducing both in-process and finished steel stocks, SAIL freed up cash flows and lowered working capital requirements, strengthening its financial position.
Operational levers are also being sharpened to reduce cost. Annual manpower reduction is steadily improving per-tonne employee cost efficiency. At the same time, SAIL is sourcing more renewable power, both as a compliance requirement as well as a cost-advantage lever, creating structural savings in energy expenditure. These measures align with the company’s broader sustainability agenda while reinforcing competitiveness.
Commenting on the future vision, Dr A K Panda, Director (Finance) with additional charge as Director (Commercial), SAIL, said: “By reducing debt, managing inventories more efficiently and expanding our reach through focused marketing initiatives, SAIL is strengthening its foundations while preparing for expansion. With rising demand, a robust CAPEX pipeline, and a clear commitment to sustainability and green steel, we are confident of achieving close to 20.0 million tonnes of sales in FY25-26 and setting even higher targets in the years ahead – turning today’s strength into tomorrow’s opportunity.”
