CSP steel plant to boost Ceará state exports 'by a third'

Brazil's Companhia Siderúrgica do Pecém (CSP) steel plant is expected to boost total exports from northeastern Ceará state by about 30%.

That's according to Eduardo Bezerra, a director at the local branch of Brazilian export promotion body CIN, newspaper O Povo reported.

The maturation of a project like CSP takes about two years, the paper said, and as part of the process neighboring Pecém port may need to adapt in parallel.

Although the government is currently carrying out expansion work on the multi-purpose maritime terminal, there could at some point be a mismatch between demand and the services and facilities the port can offer, it added.

But even with the Brazilian economy in the doldrums, new projects are being developed in Ceará, such as its new export processing zone ZPE. CNI projections point to a jump in exports starting next year fostered by the CSP plant and by granite-related businesses that are relocating to the Pecém ZPE.

CNI forecasts Ceará exports to reach US$2bn in two years.

CSP

South Korean steel producer Dongkuk brought the CSP plant online on June 11.

The mill, in Pecém, is the second largest private sector project in Brazil after mining giant Vale's S11D iron ore mine.

The miner holds a 50% stake in CSP, while Dongkuk and fellow steelmaker Posco have 30% and 20% interests, respectively. Posco will run the plant and Dongkuk will import steel products from the facility, while both are providing capital for the project.

The plant is designed to produce 3Mt/y of steel slabs in its first phase, and output can be increased to 6Mt/y in phase two.