Consortium eyes Krakatau project

JAKARTA: A consortium of two South Korean companies namely Samsung Corp. and Posco Steel Corp. and an Italian firm Danienli & C. SPA have shown interest in the construction of a new plant for state-owned steel company PT Krakatau Steel.

Samsung Vice President Lee CW said the consortium had great hopes of winning the tender for the project, since the group offered a competitive price for constructing the plant.

"The project is aimed at expanding Krakatau's rolled-coil steel capacity by between one million and 1.5 million tons annually. We are hoping to be able to win the tender," Lee told reporters after meeting Vice President Jusuf Kalla on Monday.

Lee refused to disclose the value of the project, saying only the tender winner would be announced in July, with the construction scheduled to start in the middle of this year and to be completed within 24 months. -- JP