JSW Steel Achieves Global Investment Grade Status with Moody’s Baa3 Rating

JSW Steel Limited, India’s largest steel producer, has achieved a major financial milestone after Moody’s Ratings assigned the company a Baa3 long-term issuer rating with a Stable Outlook. The upgrade places JSW Steel in the global investment-grade category, reflecting its stronger financial profile and disciplined balance sheet management.

Moody’s also upgraded the company’s senior unsecured rating to Baa3 from Ba1. In addition, the rating agency upgraded the guaranteed senior unsecured revenue bonds issued by the Jefferson County Port Authority, which are backed by JSW Steel.

Moody’s Upgrade Reflects Strong Financial Position

According to Moody’s, the rating upgrade is supported by JSW Steel’s cost-efficient operations, diversified manufacturing footprint, strong market position, and significant debt reduction.

The company has made remarkable progress in strengthening its balance sheet over the past 15 months.

Key Financial Highlights

• Moody’s Long-Term Issuer Rating: Upgraded to Baa3 with a Stable Outlook
• Senior Unsecured Rating: Upgraded from Ba1 to Baa3
• Net Debt (March 31, 2025): ₹76,563 crore
• Net Debt (June 30, 2026): ₹46,157 crore
• Debt Reduction: More than ₹30,000 crore
• Net Debt-to-EBITDA Ratio: Improved from 3.34x to 1.46x

The substantial reduction in leverage demonstrates the company’s focus on improving financial strength while maintaining operational growth.

Series of Credit Rating Upgrades

The Moody’s upgrade follows several positive rating actions by domestic and international credit rating agencies.

Recent upgrades include:

• Fitch Ratings: Upgraded JSW Steel to BB+ with a Positive Outlook on July 6, 2026.
• CARE Ratings: Upgraded the company to CARE AA+ on July 8, 2026.
• ICRA: Upgraded the long-term rating to [ICRA]AA+ on July 30, 2026.

These upgrades reflect growing confidence in the company’s financial stability and long-term growth prospects.

Expanding Steel Production Capacity

JSW Steel continues to expand its manufacturing capabilities to meet rising domestic and global demand.

As of March 31, 2026, the company had a crude steel production capacity of 31.9 million tonnes per annum (MTPA) in India, increasing to 36.4 MTPA when including its joint ventures.

The company recently completed:

• A 5 MTPA brownfield expansion
• A 1.5 MTPA debottlenecking project at its Vijayawada facility

Looking ahead, JSW Steel plans to commission an additional 5 MTPA expansion under Phase 3 during FY2027-28, further strengthening its production capacity.

Management Commentary

Commenting on the achievement, Jayant Acharya, Joint Managing Director and CEO, said the investment-grade rating is an important milestone that will improve JSW Steel’s access to global capital markets at more competitive borrowing costs.

Swayam Saurabh, Chief Financial Officer, said the company’s disciplined capital allocation, strong cash flows, and optimized financing strategy have significantly strengthened its balance sheet and positioned it well to support future expansion plans.