India?s attempt to import 1 million tonne of wheat may face further problems as the prices quoted by bidders in response to the recent tender are in the range of $318-370 a tonne, up to 40% higher than the price quoted in bids received earlier.

State Trading Corporation of India (STC), the government agency that floated a global tender earlier this year for the import of 1 million tonne, had cancelled the order since the prices quoted then too were high. Those prices were $267-302 a tonne.

Some bidders even offered to reduce the price to $263 a tonne, which was also rejected by the government.

Seven bidders are currently in the fray: Cargill, Glencore International AG, Alfred E Toepfer International, Riaz Trading, Concordia, Louis Dreyfus and Agrilink Asia-Pacific (a Singapore-based arm of Concordia). While the government expected prices to soften in June, the ban on wheat exports by the Ukraine, and lower production in the US, Australia and the Black Sea region have ensured a tight supply scenario, pushing up prices. Globally, prices have jumped 20% in the past one month.

?The offer to supply 70,000 tonne of wheat by Louis Dreyfus is yet to be accepted as the firm has not supplied the wheat bond as required by the tender,? said an STC official.

All seven bidders offered to supply 9.2 lakh tonne in all against the order for one million tonne. Alfred E Toepfer quoted the lowest price at $318 a tonne on C&F basis. It has agreed to supply only 2.5 lakh tonne, of which 1.28 lakh would be delivered at Mundra Port in Gujarat and the remaining at other ports. Agrilink Asia-Pacific quoted Rs 12,000 a tonne on ex-godown basis for 10,000 tonne.

Cargill bid $224 a tonne on C&F basis for 1.75 lakh tonne at Mundra port in September-October. Glencore quoted a price range of $ 343-360 a tonne for 2 lakh tonne. Concordia bid $333 a tonne for 90,000 tonne at Mundra port and Riaz quoted $329-337.50 a tonne for 1.25 lakh tonne.

The STC official said global bidders quoted $317.95-$328.95 a tonne for delivery at Mundra port, $328.95-348 a tonne for delivery at Kandla port, $327.95-370 a tonne for delivery at Chennai port, $322.95-358 a tonne for delivery at Kakinada port and $360-$370 a tonne at Tuticorin port.