Taiwanese stainless steel giant Yieh United Steel Corp (Yusco) expects to start its 2.4 million mt/year hot-rolled stainless steel project and 800,000mt/year steel smelting project in Huangpu district in China’s Guangzhou city by the end of 2008. The hot-rolled stainless project and the steel smelting project, which will cost an estimated USD 673 million, “are expected to be finished by the end of 2008,” one Yusco source said. Meanwhile, construction of one 300,000mt/year cold-rolled stainless plant is under way in Huangpu. “The [cold-rolled stainless] plant is scheduled to start trial operations by the end of 2004, and begin formal production by the first quarter of 2005,” another Yusco source said. Yusco projected a total sales revenue of USD 2.23 billion in 2004, up 54% from last year. The higher estimate is attributed to better sales prices since late 2003.
