VISA Steel in JV for Rs 260-cr Orissa plant

KOLKATA: Visa Steel on Friday inked a joint venture agreement with China’s Baosteel Trading and VISA Comtrade of Switzerland for setting up a 1 lakh tonne-per-annum ferro chrome plant in Orissa at a capital outlay of Rs 260 crore.

The JV company, VISA BAO, will be a subsidiary of VISA Steel which will hold a 51% stake. Baosteel Trading and VISA Comtrade will hold 35% and 14% stakes, respectively.

Part of the Baosteel Group Corporation, Baosteel Trading is the designated company for overseas investment in resource development to support raw materials requirements of Baosteel’s plants in China and has sourcing rights for imports of ferro chrome into China for consumption of Baosteel and its affiliates.

Baosteel is one of the leading steel makers in China with a capacity of 24 million tonnes per annum, including stainless steel, for which they have a long-term demand for ferro chrome.

Commenting on the JV, VISA group chairman Vishambhar Saran said: “This JV takes our relation with Basosteel another step forward and ensures a win-win situation for both companies through a long-term market for the JV company and a stable supply of ferro chrome for Baosteel’s stainless steel plant in China.”

Incidentally, VISA Comtrade, the international trading, shipping and logistics arm of the Rs 2,000-crore VISA Group, has been active in sourcing coal and coke from China and supplying minerals such as chrome ore/concentrates and iron ore, ferro-chrome and non-ferrous products to China. Baosteel Group chairman Xu Le Jiang said: “It is a great start for co-operation between Baosteel and VISA Group and we hope the JV will be mutually beneficial to both parties.”

The JV agreement was signed by Vishal Agarwal, managing director of VISA Steel, Mr Li Qing Yu, President of Baosteel Trading and Mr Vivek Agarwal, executive director of VISA Comtrade in Shanghai. Mr Xu Le Jiang, chairman, Baosteel Group, Madam Xie, immediate past chairperson, Baosteel Group and various other senior executives of Baosteel were also present at the signing ceremony.