Valin
ArcelorMittal Automotive Steel Co (VAMA), an automotive steel joint venture between global steel giant
ArcelorMittal and
China-based Hunan Iron & Steel Co., has officially opened its new advanced automotive steel plant in
China, beginning a new era of automotive manufacturing in the country.
VAMA will produce high-strength automotive steels that currently have to be imported, for the Chinese market. The annual production capacity will be 1.5 million mt, including 800,000 tons of cold rolled coils, 200,000 mt of aluminum-coated coils and 500,000 mt of hot dip galvanized coils. The total investment amounted to RMB 5.2 billion ($832 million).
According to
ArcelorMittal's statement,
China has the world's fastest-growing automotive market, recording a 16 percent increase in car sales to 18 million units last year, and is expected to account for 35 percent of worldwide automotive growth between now and 2020.