Dongkuk Steel proposes US$1-bil steel mill
| 15:08' 04/07/2007 (GMT+7) | ||
VietNamNet Bridge – Dongkuk Steel Group, South Korea's third largest steel maker, plans to build a US$1-bil steel mill in Dung Quat Economic Zone in the central province of Quang Ngai. According to Dung Quat Economic Zone Authority's investment Promotion Center, Dongkuk Steel made the proposal after studying the province's investment environment late last month. If the project is approved by Vietnamese authorities, it will rival another US$1-bil steel complex in the same zone, to be built by Taiwan's Tycoons Steel International Co., Ltd. The first mill in this 455-hectare plant is slated to open late next year. After the first phase, the mill will turn out two million tons of steel billets a year, worth US$539mil. The company plans to increase output by three million more tons on an annual basis in the second phase, achieving the mill's full capacity by 2013; output will be for both local use and export. Many foreign steel groups are awaiting permission to invest in other steel projects because the country is viewed as a gateway to the Southeast Asian market - the world's largest steel importer. Other provinces attracting investors for steel projects include Ba Ria-Vung Tau, Ha Tinh and Khanh Hoa. Authorities have estimated Vietnam will need 10mil tons of steel by 2010, 15mil tons by 2015 and 20mil tons by 2020. As well, many high-tech steel products cannot be made by Vietnamese producers and will still need to be imported. To date, Dung Quat has licensed more than 100 projects worth more than US$5bil and has about 35 additional projects pending. Its economic zone has 46 projects in operation or under development. Big investments in the zone include that of Tycoons Group, a US$260-mil heavy industry complex by Korea's Doosan Group, an oil refinery by PetroVietnam, and a US$750-mil shipyard by the Vietnam Shipbuilding Industry Group. (Source: Viet Nam Net) |
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