Kobe Steel to form jv with China

Kobe Steel to form jv with China

Japanese steel producer Kobe Steel Ltd announced plans to build a direct reduced iron (DRI) plant in China with a cost of $100 million. The planned plant will be a joint venture with China's Shijiazhuang Iron and Steel Co (Shigang). The companies signed a letter of intent to build the DRI plant yesterday. Shigang will hold two-thirds of the joint venture, while the remaining will be shared among Kobe and other two partners. The plant will have an annual production capacity of 500'000 tons. All partners will conduct a feasibility study and plan to sign the final agreement at the end of 2005.