Nucor and CVRD in pig iron joint venture
Brazilian iron ore producer Companhia Vale do Rio Doce (CVRD) and Nucor Corporation, the major US steel producer and recycler, announced yesterday yhat they have signed an agreement to construct and operate an environmentally friendly pig iron project in northern Brazil. The two companies will establish a joint venture company to operate the facility which will have two conventional mini-blast furnaces iron ore of which will be supplied by CVRD's iron ore mine in Carajas northern Brazil. The two furnaces will annually produce 380'000 mts of pig iron in the initial phase. The entire production is expected to be purchased by Nucor. The total capital of the project will be about $80 million, $10 million wil be invested by Nucor. CVRD's equity contribution will be the land and forest assets that are currently owned by its wholly owned subsidiary CELMAR SA. The ownership will be split 78% CVRD and 22% by Nucor. Nucor and affiliates are manufacturers of steel products, with operating facilities in fourteen states. Products include carbon and alloy steel bars, beams, sheet and plate, steel joists and joist girders, steel deck, cold finished steel etc. CVRD is the world's largest producer and exporter of iron ore and pellets and one of the leading global producers of manganese and ferro alloys. The company also holds stakes in companies in the US and South America.