OUTOKUMPU TECHNOLOGY?S NEW ROLE AND TARGETS - SIGNIFICANT ORDER FROM BRAZIL TO BOOST THE GROWTH
OUTOKUMPU OYJ STOCK EXCHANGE RELEASE NOVEMBER 8, 2005 AT 9.30 AM
OUTOKUMPU TECHNOLOGYS NEW ROLE AND TARGETS - SIGNIFICANT ORDER
FROM BRAZIL TO BOOST THE GROWTH
While Outokumpu Groups strategy is to focus on leadership in
stainless steel, Outokumpu Technology has a more independent role
and is managed as a separate business through its own board work.
Outokumpu Technology has outlined its vision to be the leading
technology partner in minerals and metals production industries.
Outokumpu Technology's strategic focus is on improving
profitability and growing the business. The financial objective
is to grow Outokumpu Technology´s net sales to EUR 700 million by
2008 with the current business concept and generate a profit
before taxes of EUR 50 million.
Thanks to its advanced and environmentally sound technologies the
company has shown its competitiveness in the demanding growth
areas such as China, India and Brazil. At the end of September
2005 Outokumpu Technologys order backlog stood at record high EUR
524 million. The order intake is also expected to continue strong.
Outokumpu Technology believes it will reach its targets by
capitalizing on the market cycle kept up by high metal prices, by
broadening the project scopes and increasing the service business,
by commercializing and acquiring new technologies and building
strategic partnerships with the industry leaders. In project
implementation the company will utilize Outokumpus global data
network and modern engineering tools and software for efficient
data transfer between its competence centers in different
countries. In order to stay competitive, the company will do more
and more engineering work locally in low-cost countries.
In order to improve profitability, Outokumpu Technology has also
cut its fixed costs, improved internal efficiency and decided on a
new organizational structure. As of September 1, 2005 its business
has been divided into three new divisions: Minerals Processing,
responsible for ore concentrating technologies; Base Metals,
selling copper, nickel, zinc, precious metals and ferroalloy
technologies; and Metals Processing, focusing on iron, aluminum,
and sulfuric acid/off-gas technologies. Outokumpus research
center in Pori, Finland is part of Outokumpu Technology.
New significant order from Brazilian iron ore pellet producer
Samarco
Outokumpu Technologys growth is boosted by a new contract for the
turnkey delivery of a pellet indurating furnace for Samarco
Mineração S.A., the worlds second largest sea borne exporter of
iron ore pellets. This is the largest-ever deal in Outokumpu
Technologys history with the contract value of some USD 200
million (EUR 170 million).
The new plant will be installed at Samarco's iron ore port in
Ponta Ubu, Espírito Santo, Brazil. Once operational at the end of
2007, the plant will treat 7.25 million tonnes of iron ore per
year, which makes it the largest in the world.
"This deal confirms our position as a leading technology partner
for the iron and steel industry - especially in Brazil, one of the
worlds largest iron ore producers. Outokumpu's traveling grate
technology, originally developed and designed by Lurgi, is already
being used successfully in nine Brazilian pelletizing plants",
comments Tapani Järvinen, CEO of Outokumpu Technology.
Outokumpu Technologys scope covers the entire engineering,
supply, construction and start-up of the pellet indurating
furnace. The new plant will meet all the latest environmental
regulations. Approximately 80% of the services and supplies will
be sourced locally in Brazil.
For further information, please contact:
Tapani Järvinen, President & CEO, Outokumpu Technology Oy
tel. +358 9 421 2135, e-mail: tapani.jarvinen@outokumpu.com
Peter Weber, President Metals Processing, Outokumpu Technology GmbH,
tel. +49 172 6889188, e-mail: peter.weber@outokumpu.com
OUTOKUMPU OYJ
Corporate Management
Eero Mustala
Senior Vice President - Corporate Communications
tel. +358 9 421 2435, mobile +358 40 504 5146, fax +358 9 421 2429
e-mail: eero.mustala@outokumpu.com
Outokumpu Technology is a worldwide technology leader in minerals
and metals processing, providing innovative tailored solutions for
a wide variety of customer needs in iron and steel, aluminium and
non-ferrous metals industries. In 2004 the company employed 1700
people who generated net sales of EUR 423 million.
