Shougang Group, China's fourth largest steelmaker by output,
intends to move all of its polluting plants out of the capital by
2012, according to its latest restructuring plan.
The proposal, which has been presented to the State Council for
approval, could bring to an end a lengthy debate concerning the
difficulties and cost of relocation and arrangements for their
120,000 employees.
Shougang's current base in Beijing's western suburbs, the
capital's biggest polluter with chimneys belching out thick clouds
of smoke, is expected to become the company's new headquarters.
Company sources said they are planning to develop
non-steelmaking sectors such as real estate and mechanical and
electrical industries at the vacated sites.
A number of real estate giants from Hong Kong and overseas are
talking with Shougang over the prospect of cooperation, they
said.
As for the 85-year-old company, whose profit and tax
contribution account for 3.3 percent of the city's annual revenue,
the relocation, estimated to cost some 40 billion RMB (US$4.8
billion), may be easier said than done.
But some progress has already been made, even though they are
still to get government approval.
Shougang signed an agreement with Tangshan Iron and Steel Group,
the country's sixth largest steel maker, to jointly invest 48.6
billion RMB (US$5.9 billion) in a steel mill at a new base,
expected to have an annual production capacity of 15 million
tons.
This would be on the island of Caofeidian, 2 kilometers in
length, 1 kilometer in width and located 80 kilometers south of
Tangshan, a coastal city of Hebei
Province. It has a natural harbor capable of berthing cargo
ships with a loading capacity of more than 200,000 tons, which may
relieve raw material transport bottlenecks and reduce costs.
Chen Maopeng, an official from Hebei's Development and Reform
Commission, was quoted by the Economic Observer as saying that in
its first phase the base could produce 8 million tons of steel
annually if it went ahead.
There were no reports of the environmental impact that could be
expected on the area of Caofeidian, which is already home to a
number of industrial projects, or whether the new base would be any
less polluting than the current Beijing plants.
Shougang is locating in other areas of Hebei, including a
steel-smelting plant in Qian'an, with an annual production of 2
million tons, that was finished in October.
In Qinhuangdao, Shougang has taken part in the building of a
plate-making company that can now pump out 400,000 tons per year
but could be expanded to 1.2 million tons in the near future.
"The relocation is an enormous opportunity for Shougang," Zhu
Jimin, president of Shougang, was quoted by the 21st Century
Economic Report as saying, coming as it does at a time when many
major steel makers are in merger talks with smaller players.
Whether this possible step forward for Shougang will hold any
benefits for China's environment and its people's health is as yet
unknown.
(China Daily December 10, 2004)
