Companies

China oks Baosteel's Zhanjiang steel mill

(Agencies)
Updated: 2010-07-07 10:48

An employee works at a factory of Baosteel Group Corp., China's biggest steel maker in Shanghai July 6, 2010. [Agencies]

Baosteel Group, the country's top steel maker, has obtained approval to build its high-grade carbon steel project in the southern province of Guangdong, a company official said on Tuesday.

Hu Xuefa, head of the energy department of Shanghai-listed Baoshan Iron & Steel Co, said the company aims to produce more high-end steel products while seeking more overseas resources to handle rising raw material costs.

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"Baosteel is doing more study on high-end steel products so as to replace imports and will also try to tackle more overseas resources," Hu told reporters.

The plan for more high-end products, such as automobile steel, follows Beijing's call to restructure the country's excessive steel capacity and restrict exports of low-end products, like rebar.

Baosteel has said it aims to expand the Zhanjiang project to 10 million ton per year as part of its efforts to boost high-end steel products.

Dai Jian, deputy head of the energy department, said the company would continue to invest more in environmental facilities and plans to spend between 2 to 3 billion yuan this year, including upgrading Ningbo steel mill.

Baosteel plans to produce 50 million tonnes of crude steel by 2012.