President Truong Tan Sang attended a ceremony to inaugurate theexpanded construction of a steel plant invested by Japanese steelmakerVina Kyoei in the Phu My I Industrial Park in Tan Thanh district, thesouthern province of Ba Ria-Vung Tau on July 24.

Speaking at theevent, the President lauded the achievements reaped by Vina Kyoei overthe last 21 years in the locality, stressing that the Japaneseinvestor’s success is also Vietnam’s success.

He said the twocountries’ governments signed a number of cooperation agreements,especially in industry. With support provided by the Japanese and itsworld’s leading technology, Vietnam’s industrial sector is expected todevelop strongly, he noted.

President Sang said believedthat with its newly-inaugurated project, the Vina Kyoei Company willcontinue to operate effectively and stimulate economic growth in thesouthern region and the locality in particular.

Since launchingoperations in Ba Ria-Vung Tau in 1994 with 69 million USD in investment,Vina Kyoei has manufactured 6 million tonnes of steel for constructionso far. Its plant’s expansion is expected to help double the firm’sproduction.

As the first joint venture between Japan and Vietnamin manufacturing steel, Vina Kyoei plans to increase its annualproductivity to 800,000-1,000,000 tonnes of steel to meet the increasingdemand in the Vietnamese market.-VNA