Dongkuk Steel Mill, the country’s third-largest steelmaker, said Monday that it would start the operation of its Brazil-based steel mill in June, in the hope that it would be able to reduce its reliance on imported steel plates.

The steelmaker has imported steel plates, which are mainly used for shipbuilding, from Japan and China at a relatively higher price, company officials said.


“We will now be able to have a stable supply of steel plates from the mill in Brazil, which is set to begin operation in June,” a company spokesperson told The Korea Herald.

Companhia Siderurgica do Pecem was first established in 2008 as a joint venture between Brazilian company Vale SA and Korea’s largest steelmaker POSCO.

Its operation had been initially scheduled to start in December last year, but it was delayed allegedly due to the continued recession in the steel industry and the absence of Dongkuk Steel Mill chairman Chang Sae-joo, who is now in jail for embezzling company funds.

When its operation starts in June, the mill can produce 3 million tons of steel sheets a year. Of this amount, Dongkuk has priority over 1.6 million tons while Vale SA and POSCO are entitled to 600,000 tons and 800,000 tons respectively.

Vale SA, Dongkuk and POSCO each have a 50 percent, 30 percent and 20 percent stake respectively in the $5.5 billion project, with Dongkuk holding management rights, the company said.

Dongkuk also said it plans to complete the extension of the production assembly of color steel sheets at its plant in Busan in the third quarter of this year, with the aim of expanding its portion of high-value added products.

By Shin Ji-hye (shinjh@heraldcorp.com)