The steel industry on Thursday said the partial roll back of export duty on iron ore fines would hit domestic steel utilities and could affect expansion plans, even as ore exporters sought full withdrawal of the levy.

"We have been demanding that export duty be doubled to discourage export of iron ore, which is needed to fructify the massive capacity expansions announced by the major steel utilities," an official of Indian Steel Alliance told the media.

Finance Minister P Chidambaram today reduced the export duty on iron ore fines with less than 62 per cent Fe (iron) content to Rs 50 per tonne from Rs 300. However, export duty on iron ore fines with Fe content of more than 62 per cent and lumps would remain unchanged at Rs 300 per tonne.

"According to latest estimates we have about six billion tonnes of mineable iron ore reserve in the country and if the present level of exports continued unabated then we would be exhausting our ores by 2030 and forced to import," he said.

Even Steel Minister Ram Vilas Paswan had recently said that "there should not be a situation where steel utilities are compelled to import iron ore to meet their production needs in the future".

The miners, who were clamouring for reduction in the export duty, reacted cautiously. "It is a partial relief for us. The export duty of iron ore having above 62 per cent Fe content has been left out and their disposal would be a serious problem," Federation of Indian Mineral Industries (FIMI), Secretary General R K Sharma told the media.