Indian industrial giant to invest in Vietnam

Oct 12, 2007, 9:58 GMT

   Hanoi - India's industrial giant, the Tata Group, has announced it will set up a 3.5-billion-dollar joint venture with the Vietnam Steel Corporation to build a steel plant, state-run media reported Friday.

   The general director of Tata Steel Southeast Asia, Indronil Sengupta, was quoted as saying that the 4.5-million-ton plant will process iron ore as well as produce finished steel products.

   The original memorandum of understanding states that Tata Steel will hold a 65 per cent stake in the plant and a 30 per cent stake in the Thach Khe iron ore mine, making this one of the largest direct investments in Vietnam.

   The plant will be built in Ha Tinh province, where Vietnam has extensive iron ore reserves. The venture will supply steel-hungry industries, such as ship building factories and construction firms.

   'Vietnam is the most significant market for Tata at this moment, particularly in the production of industrial steel,' the company's executive director Alan Rosling told the Viet Nam News Agency on Thursday.

   Rosling said that Tata hopes to eventually invest in Vietnam's chemical, transportation and telecommunication sectors.

   Tata is one of India's largest and most powerful industrial groups, with 96 companies that are engaged in everything from making cars to developing software.