Japan's JFE Steel may invest in Brazil plant

JFE Steel Corp. said Friday that it will consider investing in a new steel-making plant in Brazil that mining giant Vale SA VALE +0.62% and two South Korean companies recently agreed to launch in Ceara state in the country's northeast region.

The move means Tokyo-based JFE has decided to switch its investment in Brazil from an initially planned project that the company released in 2008.

JFE, a unit of JFE Holdings Inc. (5411.TO), said in 2008 that it would start studying jointly building a steel slab supply center with Vale and South Korea's Dongkuk Steel Mill Co. .

JFE had said the plant, which the company may build in the Pesem district in the state of Ceara, would have an annual steel slab output capacity of 5 million to 6 million metric tons.

But the company said it will discontinue studying the original scheme and instead will join in the project on the steel slab plant which Vale, South Korea's Posco and Dongkuk have agreed to construct.

Steel slabs are intermediate products that are sent to mills for rolling.