Nippon Steel’s Wire Processing Company Starts Operation in Thailand

Nippon Steel Bar & CH Wire (Thailand), a joint company between Nippon Steel and Japanese business house, will start operation in September 2007. Nippon Steel established the JV to expand the local production of cold header (CH) steel wire and meet the demand for high quality and quick delivery when automobile components demand sharply grows in the country, while Nippon Steel has another production base for CH wire, TSK Wire in Thailand. Nippon Steel Bar & CH Wire Thailand has the capacity at about 40,000 tonnes per annum. The total investment the JV is expected to total 1.85 billion yen.Thai automobile production currently reaches about 1.2 million cars per annum which grows up by over 10% every year. Thai auto market is expected to keep steady growth in the future, although the car sales became slower this year due to the reduction in consumer spending by higher bath or political uncertainty. Japanese many component makers such for bolts or nuts have expanded their production in Thailand to follow Japanese automakers.Nippon Steel holds 28% share in Nippon Steel Bar & CH Wire Thailand and another productive JV for CH wire in China. Nippon Steel operates the JVs with Japanese 3 wire processors and business houses. Nippon Steel supplies wire rod to these JVs and delivers high quality CH wire to the local users with advantage of Japanese processors’ know-how.