Capacity expansion at Shanghai BNA

Shanghai-based BNA, the automotive steel venture jointly owned by Chinese Baosteel (50 percent), Japanese Nippon Steel (38 percent) and Arcelor Mittal (12 percent), is planning to double its automotive sheet production capacity to 1.6 million mt by 2009, according to Japanese sources. The three companies will spend around $427 million on the capacity expansion. The companies are expected to reach a final agreement on the expansion plan in March. BNA began operations in October 2005 with an initial investment of $380.7 million. The venture currently has an annual galvanized steel sheet production capacity of 800,000 mt supplying the automotive industry, and aims to be able to satisfy 50 percent of Chinese automotive steel demand by 2010.