POSCO unit, 2 Japanese firms to set up needle coke JV

SEOUL, Sept. 6 (Yonhap) -- POSCO, South Korea's leading steelmaker, said Tuesday that its chemical unit and two Japanese firms have agreed to set up a joint venture in South Korea to make so-called needle coke used in electrodes.
The venture will be set up in Gwangyang, 423 kilometers south of Seoul, and will produce 100,000 tons of needle coke annually when the construction of the plant is completed in 2014, POSCO said. The two Japanese firms are Mitsubishi Chemical Holdings Corp. and Mitsubishi Corp., it said.
POSCO did not give specifics on the deal, including how much it will spend on the project.
Needle coke, produced from coal tar pitch, is used in the production of electrodes for the steel and aluminium industries.
POSCO Chemtech Co. has been working to make needle coke using coal tar produced in the process of making steel.
Shares of POSCO Chemtech closed at 210,000 won (US$196) on the Seoul bourse, up 2.59 percent from the previous session's close.