Kobelco Aluminum Products and Extrusion, an auto parts maker, plans to spend $ 42 million on the expansion of the project, adding a new melting furnace and extruder and manufacturing equipment. The expansion will create 90 new jobs and the company's planned employment will reach 220.
Construction is expected to begin in January 2019, and production expansion will begin in the first half of 2020. The plant produces aluminum bumpers and subframe materials. Automakers are increasingly pressing for aluminum parts to reduce body weight to meet stringent federal fuel economy and emissions standards.
According to media reports, Kobe Steel Co., Japan's third-largest steel smelter, will spend $ 500 million to increase aluminum production, including the acquisition of a half of a plant in South Korea to meet the demand for more energy efficient vehicles.
According to the statement, Kobe Steel will invest US $ 315 million to acquire a 50% stake in Ulsan Yilu Aluminum Smelting Plant in South Korea from Novelis to expand its aluminum sheet capacity.
Kobe Steel also stated that it plans to invest 20 billion yen ($ 176 million) to increase the capacity of aluminum panels for cars at the Moka plant (to the north of Tokyo).
Kobe Steel Co., Ltd. predicts that global automotive emissions standards will be stricter, which will increase competition among automakers, which are mainly using lightweight materials to design lighter, more energy-efficient cars to increase their competitiveness.
The company estimates that by 2025, demand for aluminum panel materials in Asian markets other than China may reach 300,000 tons.
The Korean company, Ulsan Aluminum Co., Ltd., will be set up at the end of September and will employ about 600 employees. The plant will produce about 300,000 tons of cold-rolled aluminum annually, half of which will be owned by Kobe Steel. These semi-finished aluminum products will be shipped to Japan and China for final processing and sold to auto parts manufacturers.