POSCO, SAIL in wide ranging partnership pact

16 August 2007

The world's fourth-largest steel maker, South Korea's POSCO Co. Ltd, today signed a partnership with India's largest steel maker, yhe public sector Navratna, Steel Authority of India Limited (SAIL) to strengthen its business in India.

The public sector Steel Authority of India, which has six steel plants in the country, has an annual capacity of 15 million tonnes of crude steel. POSCO expects this partnership with SAIL to facilitate the smooth take-off of its Orissa and other projects in India.

POSCO, which has been seeking growth in foreign countries, has planned to build a $12- billion steel complex in Orissa, delayed by opposition to its planned export of Indian iron ore against imports of high grade ore, would be India's largest foreign direct investment project.

SAIL and POSCO will establish a strategic alliance for aligning and cooperating with each other in a wide range of strategic business and commercial interest areas. G Ojha, director, personnel, SAIL, and Soung-sik Cho, senior executive vice president and Member of Board, POSCO, signed the in New Delhi.

The two companies have agreed to cooperate in information sharing in the area of corporate strategy planning; exchange of engineers, technicians and other professionals; sharing of know-how and expertise in the areas of development of mines and business practices such as ERP, PI and Six Sigma; joint utilisation of each other's existing marketing and warehousing network; and Coordination in procurement of coking coal, nickel and ferro-alloys and engagement of transportation vessels.

Both companies will also cooperate in areas relating to joint R&D projects in the future.