The $8-billion China Steel Corporation (CSC), the largest integrated steel maker in Taiwan, along with its co-investors, will invest $178 million in a new plant to produce electrical steels in Bharuch district of Gujarat, according to Mr Francis Kuo-Hsin Liang, Vice-Minister, Ministry of Economic Affairs, Taiwan.
It will be the second largest Taiwanese investment in India. ,Recently China Synthetic Rubber said it will invest nearly $330 million in a new plant in Andhra Pradesh.
As on date there are nearly 80 investment projects in India implemented by Taiwan investors with a total investment of nearly $800 million. Of this, the top five are Apache Footwear ($125 million); Foxconn Technology group ($110 million); Feng Tay Group ($77 million); Wintek Corporation ($55 million) and Synnex Technology ($24 million).
China Steel's project to produce will start in September and is scheduled for starting test run in October 2013, Mr Liang told
The company's board met on Wednesday to clear the Bharuch project, he said.
With an annual capacity (crude steel) of nearly 10 million tonnes, China steel produces a range of products, including hot and cold rolled coils, coated coils, rods and bars.
India: high growth
China Steel will invest $66.58 million and the rest will come from co-investors. To grab the opportunity of high growth of demand in India for electrical steels, as well as to enter the markets in West Asia, Europe and North Africa via India, the company would co-invest with international strategic partners to building an ‘annealing-and-coating' line to produce electrical steel coils at Bharuch.
The production line will annually produce 200 thousand tonnes of non-grain oriented electrical steels, according to information available in the company's website.
Incidentally, the investment of China Steel also coincides with the Gujarat Government's plan to establish a Taiwan Technology Park to accommodate investments from Taiwan. The State will soon send an investment delegation to that country.