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.