Indian steel mills secured only about half of their metallurgical coke requirements domestically in the first half of 2025, intensifying calls for the government to ease import restrictions on the key steelmaking input. Internal government data reviewed by Reuters show domestic production at 1.5 million metric tons versus demand of 3.09 million tons for January–June. New Delhi introduced curbs in January 2025 to support local coke producers and in June extended them, imposing country‑specific quotas and capping imports at 1.4 million tons for July 1–December 31. Executives at steelmakers including JSW Steel and ArcelorMittal Nippon Steel India say the limits are constraining access to preferred grades and disrupting expansion plans, and they are urging authorities to lift quotas by nearly sevenfold. The automobile industry previously warned the government that the restrictions risked disrupting supplies of certain auto components. Before the curbs, India’s imports of low‑ash met coke had more than doubled over four years, with key suppliers including China, Japan, Indonesia, Poland and Switzerland. The Ministry of Commerce and Industry has not publicly responded to the latest appeals. India is the world’s second‑largest crude steel producer, making the availability of met coke a critical factor for blast‑furnace operations in the months ahead.