POSCO to form nickel joint venture

POSCO to form nickel joint venture

South Korean steel giant POSCO announced that it signed a memorandum of understanding with Indonesian mining company PT Aneka Tambang Tbk (ANTAM) to conduct a feasibility study for a ferro-nickel joint venture in Indonesia. The feasibility study will be completed in 2005. If the results look promising, production at the joint venture facility would begin by late 2009. The facility will be designed to produce 30'000 tons of nickel per annum. Due to the tight supply of raw materials because of strong demand from China, POSCO is looking for additional supply sources for raw materials such as iron ore, coal and nickel. Nickel is a crucial raw material used in stainless steel production.