After struggling to find a partner for its Mutún iron and steel complex in the region of Santa Cruz, Bolivia announced this week it will develop the project alone, without the help of a foreign partner.
According to Bolivian president, Evo Morales, the country will now assume the project, which includes the construction of a direct reduced iron (DRI) unit, as well as pellet, laminating, oxygen and thermal power plants.
India-based Jindal Steel and Power was a partner with Bolivia in the Mutún iron ore project, which is part of the Mutún complex. In 2007, Jindal acquired the rights to explore the Mutún iron ore mine, which has nearly 40 billion mt of the commodity and 10 billion mt of manganese. However, the company gave up on the 50/50 partnership in 2012, citing a lack of support from president Evo Morales.
In addition to the Indian partner, Bolivia was then looking for a Chinese partner to develop the steel part of the complex.
The government expected to complete the project by 2025 in three different phases. In April this year, the Bolivian government sent an invitation to seven Chinese companies to establish a partnership for its Mutun steel project in the region of Santa Cruz. The prospective Chinese companies that could partner with Bolivia’s government in the project included Complant Mechanical, China Railway, China Aluminum International, Sinosteel Equipment, CIPMIEC–Catie Group, Capital Engineers and China CAMC.
State-owned Empresa Siderúrgica del Mutún (ESM) expects to meet up to 60 percent of the country’s demand for steel.
Bolivian imports of iron and steel have surged by 343 percent in the past 10 years, according to information released recently by the country’s institute of foreign trade, IBCE.
According to the government data, the nation’s imports of iron and steel between 2005 and 2014 reached $5.5 billion and 5.2 million mt. Since 2005, the Bolivian imports of iron and steel products have been steadily increasing both in terms of volume and value.
The imports have grown from 264,306 mt in 2005, to 550,345 mt in 2010 and to 863,269 mt in 2014, the highest import volume registered so far. From January to July this year, the South American country has imported 470,302 mt of iron and steel-related products at a value of $480 million.
In the cumulative period of January to July, Brazil was the main exporter of iron and steel-related products to Bolivia, with a 29 percent share, followed by China (28 percent), Peru (13 percent), Argentina (7 percent) and the US (3 percent). Brazil exported $139 million in products in the seven-month period, while China and Peru exported $136 million and $61 million, respectively.