The Hoa Phat Group, Vietnam’s leading steel producer, produced more than 670,000 tonnes of crude steel in January, its highest output to date and representing an annual growth of 67 percent.
The conglomerate said the fourth blast furnace at its Hoa Phat Dung Quat iron and steel production complex came into operation in the opening month of the year, officially raising its total crude steel output to 8 million tonnes per year.
This created favourable conditions for the firm to boost its manufacturing of hot-rolled coil (HRC), for which it has set a target of 2.7 million tonnes this year.
Hoa Phat’s finished construction steel output, meanwhile, grew 6 percent annually to 186,000 tonnes, of which 37,000 tonnes was exported, up 38 percent year-on-year.
Nearly 140,000 tonnes of the group’s steel billet served domestic and international markets, an annual increase of 40 percent.
Hoa Phat’s steel market share in Vietnam currently stands at 32.5 percent./.
VNA