Hyundai Steel Agrees on Technical Cooperation with Thyssen Krupp

South Korean major steel maker, Hyundai Steel held a press conference in Soul on Tuesday to announce the agreement on partial technical cooperation with Thyssen Krupp, Germany major steel maker. Hyundai Steel also announced the firm enters all-round business cooperation with Thyssen Krupp in the last half of 2007. Hyundai Steel has negotiated on technical cooperation with JFE Steel, Japanese major steel maker. However, technology transfer from JFE Steel seemed to become difficult. Hyundai Steel indicated the firm continues the technical negotiation with JFE Steel following the previous progresses. Hyundai Steel also explained the firm selected Paul Wurth, a major engineering and equipment maker for steel making in Luxembourg, as the first candidate to construct a blast furnace and Steel Plantech, Japanese major engineering and equipment maker for steel making, as the first candidate for a new converter. Hyundai Steel plans to establish integrated steelworks with 2 blast furnaces, steel making plants, continuous casting equipment, a hot strip mill and a plate mill. The blast furnaces are scheduled to have production capacity of 8 million tonnes per year. Output capacity of hot strip mill will become 3.5 million tonnes per year and that of steel plate mill 1.5 million tonnes per year. Blast furnace is expected to have a furnace volume as large as 5,250 cubic meters and to start operation in 2010. Hyundai Steel invests 5.23 trillion won for the steelworks along the original plan. The firm plans to no.3 blast furnace after 2011 and to expand total output capacity of the steelworks to 12 million tonnes per year. Total investment will account for 7.5 trillion won including the second-term project.