AK Steel has said that stories recently published in metals trade publications reporting that AK Steel licensed a Korean steel company to utilise AK Steel’s coating technology are patently false. The stories, in internet and print versions of American Metal Market and Metal Bulletin, falsely stated Pohang Coated Steel Co. Ltd (Pocos), a wholly owned subsidiary of Pohang Iron & Steel Co. Ltd., had concluded a deal with AK Steel to buy AK Steel’s technology for producing aluminised stainless sheet. AK Steel stated categorically today that the story is false. “There is not a shred of truth to the story,” said Alan H. McCoy, vice president of public affairs for AK Steel. “Incredibly, we were not contacted nor consulted in any manner by either trade journal prior to the publication of the story. Further, AK Steel has not even entertained inquiries from Pohang or its subsidiaries regarding the technology.”
