Zinc emerges as a strategic mineral with growing relevance in both infrastructure and energy sectors
NEW DELHI (India CSR): As monsoon rains sweep across India, Vedanta Group Chairman Anil Agarwal has issued a timely and urgent reminder on social media about an often- overlooked economic risk ‘corrosion’. In a compelling post, he highlighted that rusting of iron and steel due to moisture, heat & pollutants results in a 5% loss to India’s GDP annually, a drain that is both massive and avoidable.
“Everything made of iron or steel is prone to rusting due to wetness and moisture,” he wrote. “This is a huge loss, which can easily be prevented. The solution lies in galvanization where steel is coated with zinc.”
Zinc as Protector
With this, Agarwal spotlighted zinc as a national protector an essential mineral that shields steel infrastructure, vehicles, and buildings from decay, enhancing their life span and safety. His call to action is clear: in a country like India, where infrastructure faces severe weathering, galvanization must become a mainstream practice, not an afterthought.
Future-Critical Mineral Highlight
Beyond corrosion prevention, Agarwal also positioned zinc as a future-critical mineral, pointing to its emerging role in clean technology. “Today, zinc is being explored as an alternative to lithium in high-tech batteries,” he noted, indicating zinc’s strategic potential in India’s clean energy and storage revolution.
Vedanta’s Zinc Advocacy
Through its subsidiary Hindustan Zinc Limited, India’s only and the world’s largest integrated zinc producer, Vedanta has been at the forefront of promoting galvanization and responsible zinc use across infrastructure, mobility, and green tech. This message comes not just as an industrial advisory but as a larger economic imperative With a 7,800 km-long coastline, large regions face extreme corrosive conditions. Corrosion costs India approximately 5% of its GDP annually, a stark contrast to countries like Japan and Australia, where zinc-coated steel has reduced this figure to under 1.5%. Zinc galvanized steel offers durability against heat, pollution, moisture, and mechanical damage while ensuring long-lasting performance. Galvanized steel is also cost-effective as it incurs lower maintenance costs thereby increasing asset life and resulting in significant economic savings.
Vehicle Corrosion Crisis
Steel, which constitutes over 70% of most vehicle bodies, is highly susceptible to corrosion unless it is protected. Zinc is the single most effective material to protect steel from corrosion. In international markets like North America, Europe, China and Japan, over 90% of vehicles use zinc-coated bodies. In stark contrast, India lags, with currently only about 0 to 25% of vehicles utilizing zinc-coated bodies.
Strategic Infrastructure Investment
As India builds for the future, Agarwal’s post serves as a strong reminder that galvanization is not just about preventing rust it’s about protecting national assets, conserving public wealth, and accelerating India’s industrial resilience. As India inches towards the goal of 300 MTPA steel production and aims to become a developed country, zinc galvanization will enable reducing maintenance costs and higher overhead costs for upcoming infrastructure projects.
(India CSR)
