Date:01/12/2006 URL: http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/2006/12/01/stories/2006120103420300.htm

Back Uttam Galva in pact with Sumitomo arm

Our Bureau

Mumbai , Nov 30

Uttam Galva Steels has tied up with Steel Summit International, the US arm of Japan's Sumitomo Corporation, to supply value-added construction grade steel to American retail giant Home Depot.

Home Depot operates a chain of 2,000 retail stores, selling a variety of building material to the US, Canada, and South America. The steel supplied by Uttam will be used to make air distribution systems.

Uttam recently signed a MoU with the Orissa Government for setting up a three-million-tonne steel plant and a 210-MW power plant at a total investment of Rs 8,987 crore and a new generation BI-cycle plant at Gopalpur.

The company is tripling its auto-grade cold rolled steel capacity from 60,000 tonnes a year as part of a capacity expansion programme.

While the first phase of the expansion project will be completed by the year-end, the second phase will be wrapped up by mid-2007 at a total cost of Rs 600 crore.

The company is also planning to double its total cold rolled steel production to one million tonnes by the end of the calendar year.

On the export front, Uttam Galva has expanded its reach to 120 countries. It has added four countries in as many months: Russia, Denmark, Republic of Union Island and Slovakia.