Korea to invest $ 200m in Tuwairqi Steel Plant Port Qasim

ISLAMABAD, August 05, 2011 (PPI): Chairman Board of investment (BOI), Saleem H. Mandviwalla, has said that South Korea’s POSCO, the world’s number four steelmaker, would invest $200 million to expand the production capacity of Tuwairqi steel plant in Port Qasim Karachi.

While talking to media after meeting with a delegation of M/s POSCO Ltd South Korea here on Friday, he said that an MOU of joint venture between Posco and Tuwarqai will be signed by next month in the presence of Government of Sindh.

The JV of the companies to producing steel products for automobiles and construction goods is set to be completed in 2015 with an annual production capacity of 2 million tones.

POSCO in Pakistan will be a great success not only in monitory terms but its position as a technology leader in the steel sector from which Pakistan can benefit to a larger extent.

The gap between demand and supply is met through imports and the demand for steel products is around 8.00 million tonnes against the supply of around 2 million tones, said by Chairman BOI.

Mr. Baek, SVP, POSCO Korea affirmed that the construction unit POSCO Engineering & Construction will build the plant with the side aim of winning other such plant deals in Pakistan. Informing about POSCO, he said, current steel production of POSCO is around 37 million tons per annum whereas in 2010 its revenues stood at US$ 45 billion. It has been ranked at 4th position among all the steel producing companies of the world whereas it is the top position in Asia.

POSCO has its presence in a number of countries such as China, India, Myanmar, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, USA, Australia, Canada and Vietnam.

Both POSCO and Al Tuwairqi Holding of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (the parent company of TSML) are in the steel business. POSCO is in steel business for the last four decades whereas Al Tuwairqi is in steel business since late 1980. Al Tuwairqi Holding is establishing a state-of-the-art steel complex with an operational capacity of 1.28 million tons per annum of DRI plant in first phase at Port Qasim, Karachi.