The Indo-Italian MetalHub in Milan highlighted the merger of Italy's technical excellence and the mineral wealth of India

The Indo-Italian MetalHub, a one day event, which was designed to encourage cooperation between the Indian and Italian industrial metals districts, was held in Milan on July 2. This marked another step towards the cooperation between the technical excellence of Italy and the mineral richness of India. The initiative was dedicated to the industrial and mineral resources of India and with a special focus on the State of Odisha in Eastern India, where a large part of India’s mineral and metallurgical resources are concentrated. 

Odisha’s Industries Minister Ananta Das and his delegation met the top industrialists of Italy in Milan during the event.  The delegation included industries secretary Sanjeev Chopra and chairman of the Odisha Industrial Development Corporation Sanjay Singh.

Das also held several high-level meetings and panel discussions with industrial experts from Italy to promote industrial development in the state. A discussion on the subject of Odisha, Industrial hub for Italian Companies Bilateral Meetings was chaired by Alberto Cavicchiolo, president of Indo-Italian Metal Hub.

Representatives from Nalco, Hindalco, JS Group, Renovation, Daniel and C. Tenova, Vedanta, Foundry Ecocer and Sideridraulic were part of the panel discussions that discussed various aspects of the on-going and potential co-operation between the two countries.

The president of Lombardy Attilio Fontana met with the delegation led by the Minister of Industry of Odisha during the 'Indo-Italian MetalHub' meeting. Odisha was highlighted as an opportunity; a growing destination for foreign investments.

"Thanks to the wealth of minerals, the country has developed a significant metal industry, throughout its supply chain, positioning itself as a global leader in the sector," said Mr Das. 

"Our region places internationalization as a priority, and in this logic we will try to improve economic relations with India, of which today we welcome this important delegation," said Mr Fontana.

"Over the years Italy and India have strengthened trade relations, as evidenced by the volumes and the trend of the exchange, “said Carlo Edoardo Valli, vice president of the Milan Chamber of Commerce.

Monza Brianza Lodi, president of Promos, Special Company for International Activities said: "India represents a particularly attractive market for our companies.”

Kamal Prakash, Chairman, JS Group, one of the pioneers to bring International technologies to the Indian metal and mining sector, as well as the Director of AlCircle, the Virtual Aluminium Ecosystem, presented the paper “Odisha:  India’s Metals and Mineral Hub and the Doorway to Advanced Technology Applications” to the Italian and Indian delegates.

The paper highlighted how India and Odisha provide all the right ingredients to be a metal hub that can utilize Italy’s manufacturing and industrial technology expertise to optimise the mineral and metal resources and infrastructure developments.

He said that both the countries with rich cultural heritage and similarities make them natural partners in development. He also emphasised that the current initiatives taken up by the respective governments and non-government agencies are the right steps towards this direction.

"With the Indo-Italian MetalHub event, an economic exchange between two major industrial traditions, Italy and India continues,” said Alberto Cavicchiolo of IndoItalian MilanHub. “This also qualifies the cooperation in metallurgy between intellectual research and the Indian and Italian industrial districts.”

“It is no coincidence that the first international presentation of the great Indian Aluminum Park in Angul, Orissa takes place today in Milan, with the presence of the Minister of Industry Ananta Das and the presence of prestigious Italian and Indian companies, " he added. 

It is noteworthy that India became the second largest aluminium producer in 2017 in ex-China world with 3.3 million tonnes of production.  The use of aluminium in India reached 3.45 million tonnes in 2016-2017, with a growth of 6.1% per year over the last 5 years. The country has exported about 1.23 million tons of metal in 2016-17. The downstream sector is growing along with the recycling of aluminium. With the proximity to the raw materials and International Maritime Connectivity, Odisha presents an excellent Ecosystem for the Aluminium Industry. The Angul Aluminium Park could be the right investment choice for the international and domestic semi-finished and finished Aluminium product manufacturers.