China Steel Corp., the largest steelmaker in Taiwan by output, will invest NT$14.2 billion to set up its third production line of electromagnetic steel sheets in Kaohsiung, southern Taiwan, with the investment plan to be carried out soon, according to the company.
The brand new production line is scheduled to be completed by the end of 2013, with annual output of 150,000 metric tons of various electromagnetic steel sheets, and is expected to contribute NT$4.4 billion to China Steel’s revenue every year when fully operational.
China Steel’s executives indicated that the production line is composed of advanced manufacturing facilities mainly imported from Japan, including a rolling mill, annealing and pickling line and horizontal annealing line.
The executives furthered that the brand new production line will be dedicated to making higher-end electromagnetic steel sheets with thickness of only 0.15mm, far thinner than ordinary 0.35mm thick models on markets, which will be primarily used in electric vehicle motors.
Increasingly focused on production of higher-end steel products to improve operating performance, China Steel is expected to see the output of such products increase steadily to command a 43% share of its overall output this year from 38% achieved last year.
Source: CENS