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Pawar: Response for wheat tender much lower, additional tender to be floated

New Delhi , June 2

The Union Agriculture and Food Minister, Mr Sharad Pawar, has indicated that the Government would permit flour millers, biscuit makers and other actual users to import wheat at a concessional duty.

But that would take place, he added, only after "we complete our (Government's) own import plan."

Speaking at a seminar on "Emerging Issues in Food Management", organised by the Commission for Agricultural Costs and Prices (CACP) here, the Minister said that out of the 35 lakh tonne (lt) imports for which the State Trading Corporation of India (STC) had floated two tenders, contracts had been "practically finalised" for 12 lt. "The response received has been much lower than expected... We will float additional tenders (for the remaining 23 lt)," he said.

Mr Pawar did not give any breakdown of the contracted quantities or the prices, but as per available reports, the first tender for 5 lt was awarded to Australia's monopoly wheat exporter, AWB Ltd, for $178.75 per tonne cost & freight (c&f). And out of this 5 lt, only 91,000 tonnes have actually arrived.

For the second tender of 30 lt, STC received total bids for only about 26 lt, of which it has more or less finalised for only 7 lt.

This includes 3 lt to be supplied by the Geneva-based Agrico Trade & Finance SA at a bid price of $198 per tonne c&f. The rest is to again come from AWB, which is learnt to have quoted $187 a tonne for delivery at Mundra and $210 a tonne at other ports.

At the rate at which the Government's import programme is progressing, it would seem that imports on private account are unlikely to happen immediately.

Currently, wheat imports are allowed under open general licence (OGL), but are unviable at a customs duty of 50 per cent.

More Stories on : Agricultural Policy | Exports & Imports | Wheat

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