On May 1, 2023, Baosteel Co., Ltd. formally signed a contract with Saudi Aramco and the Saudi Public Investment Fund to jointly build the world's first green and low-carbon full-process heavy plate plant in Saudi Arabia.

Chen Derong, chairman of Baowu, congratulated the three parties on the successful signing of the contract through video. Baowu General Manager Hu Wangming, Baosteel Chairman Zou Jixin and General Manager Wu Xiaodi; Saudi Aramco CEO Amin Nasser, PIF Executive Vice President Yazeed Alhumied; and relevant leaders and department representatives attended the ceremony.

According to the agreement, the three parties jointly invest and establish a joint venture company, with Baosteel holding 50% of the shares, Saudi Aramco and PIF holding 25% of the shares respectively. After the establishment of the joint venture company, it will build a full-process steel manufacturing base with an annual design capacity of 2.5 million tons of direct reduced iron and 1.5 million tons of thick plates. Manufacturing and several strategic industrial sectors such as tank and pressure vessel manufacturing. The base is expected to be put into operation by the end of 2026, which will also be Baosteel's first full-process production base overseas. The implementation of this project still needs to be approved, filed and registered by relevant regulatory agencies.

This signing is a positive action of Baowu and Baosteel Co., Ltd. to implement the important instructions of General Secretary Xi Jinping to open up to the outside world at a high level to create new advantages in international cooperation and competition. move. One of the project partners, Saudi Aramco, is one of the world's largest oil producers and refiners, and is also an important crude oil supplier in China and a strategic customer of Baosteel; the other partner, PIF, is the Saudi sovereign fund and the world's largest sovereign Wealth Investment Fund. This cooperation will bring together Baosteel's advanced steel manufacturing capabilities, Saudi Aramco's sound energy and industrial service ecosystem, and PIF's professional investment experience. The three parties will work together to create a demonstration project of China-Saudi Arabia economic cooperation, in-depth coordination and cooperation, and will further expand the space for strategic cooperation.

This signing is also an important breakthrough for Baowu and Baosteel to create a world-class great enterprise and accelerate international development. Accelerating the pace of globalization and realizing going global is the firm pursuit of Baosteel Co., Ltd. to implement Baowu's three high and two modernizations, strategic deployment, long-term layout, implementation of central enterprises' responsibility, and exploration of brand going overseas. In recent years, Baosteel Co., Ltd. has actively expanded overseas markets and continued to promote the development of overseas business. The advancement of this project will surely further enhance Baosteel's comprehensive competitiveness and global influence.

The production base jointly built by the three parties will make full use of the abundant local natural gas, green electricity and other resources in Saudi Arabia, and adopt the process path of shaft furnace + electric furnace combination. The project will feature a natural gas-based direct-reduction iron furnace and an electric arc furnace, aiming to reduce CO2 emissions from the steelmaking process by more than 60% compared with conventional blast furnaces. In the future, compatibility with hydrogen will also be achieved, and carbon dioxide emissions are expected to be reduced by 90%. This is a landmark project for Baowu and Baosteel to implement the green and low-carbon development strategy, and it will also become a demonstration of more international steel cooperation projects under the dual-carbon background.

Chen Derong said that the joint investment in the construction of the Saudi heavy plate project is an important step for Baowu and Baosteel to implement the internationalization strategy and form a global industrial system, asset structure and resource allocation capabilities that match their industry status. The Saudi heavy plate project has a high starting point planning and high-standard construction, and explores the green and low-carbon transformation path of the steel industry. It integrates Baowu's advanced steel manufacturing capabilities, Saudi Aramco's strong energy and industrial service ecosystem, and PIF's professional investment experience. This project will definitely become a model of international steel cooperation under the background of double carbon, and it will definitely become a model of China-Saudi Arabia economic cooperation with stable returns and mutual benefit. It is hoped that all parties involved in the project will cooperate with each other and work together to promote cooperation in more fields with the Saudi heavy plate project as an entry point.

In his speech, Hu Wangming expressed his congratulations and thanks to Baowu, Saudi Aramco and PIF for the successful signing of the world's first green and low-carbon full-process thick plate factory project. , give full play to the advantages of strong cooperation and achieve the expected goals. And take this project as an opportunity to build a new pattern of China-Saudi Arabia economic cooperation and contribute to the prosperity and progress of human society.Editor/ZhangHui