One of the leading European processing groups, Austria-based Voestalpine AG, has announced that it has started the construction of a new steel service centre (SSC) in Romania, following the one it inaugurated in Poland earlier this year, in order to further expand its presence in southeastern Europe.
In a press release issued by the company, Voestalpine AG said the investment in this location on the Danube will be worth about €18 million and that processing is scheduled to start in the first half of 2009.
Processing at the new centre will primarily focus on the high-precision cutting of sheet metal exactly according to customer specifications. Voestalpine AG currently has five SSC locations, namely Linz (Austria), Cittadella, Conegliano, Vicenza (all Italy), and Tychy (Poland). "Expansion of the existing locations and, most importantly, the development of new markets should increase the annual operating capacity from currently 1.5 million to 2.6 million tons of steel by 2015," said the company.
Voestalpine AG stated that the main reason for their expansion strategy is the booming construction industry and the accelerated expansion plans of the automotive and automotive supply industry in southeastern Europe, in particular in Romania, which results in an increasing demand for steel. The company also stated that it plans to grow in Turkey and Ukraine as well, with new SSCs to be built in these regions in the medium term.
Voestalpine AG has also announced that its automotive division is expanding its activities with a second location in Arad in western Romania. In line with these expansion activities, the construction of a press plant by German automotive supplier Dancke, which belongs to the Voestalpine Group, is set to begin shortly. The new facility will manufacture press parts for both the local and the western European market.