Essar Steel and Kobe Steel sign MOU

Essar Steel Limited has announced that it has signed MOUs with Kobe Steel Ltd. of Japan for collaboration in the areas of technology for manufacturing Advanced High-Strength Steel (AHSS) grade steel sheets used in automotive and other relevant applications. The MOU states that Essar Steel and Kobe Steel will explore the possibility to set up a joint venture to design, construct, own and operate a continuous annealing line (CAL) and a continuous galvanizing line (CGL for galvannealed (GA) steel sheets). Kobe Steel, Ltd. and Essar presently have an umbrella agreement which encompasses the sharing of advanced technology and resources to manufacture high grade iron and steel products to help address the growing demand for high-grade steel products in India. “The auto industry is expected to be a major driver for steel demand in the country in the years to come. This MOU will further strengthen Essar Steel’s product portfolio to enable it to produce steel for high-end applications in the auto segment,” said Mr. Malay Mukherjee, CEO, Essar Steel Business Group. Kobe Steel, Ltd. is one of Japan’s leading steelmakers and producers of aluminum and copper products. Other businesses include welding consumables, industrial machinery, engineering, construction equipment and electronic materials. In the year ended March 2010, Kobe Steel produced 6.57 million metric tons of crude steel and had consolidated sales of 1.67 trillion yen (US$18.0 billion). Employees in the Kobe Steel Group numbered 33,629. More information is available at: www.kobelco.com Essar Steel, global producer of steel, is a fully integrated flat carbon steel manufacturer—with presence in Canada, USA, India and Indonesia. It is the most versatile flat steel producer with integrated facilities from extra wide plates, hot rolling, cold rolling, galvanizing and color coating, pipes with a full distribution business with Service Centre and Steel Hypermarts. Essar Steel has a global steel production capacity of 15 million tonnes per annum (MTPA). It operates seven service centre’s in India and Indonesia with an aggregate capacity of over 4.5 million tonnes. Essar has the largest network distribution channel of Essar Hypermarts, 592 retail distribution centers. Its products find wide acceptance in highly discerning consumer sectors such as automotive, white goods, construction, engineering and shipbuilding.