Posco, a South Korean steelmaker, wants to increase capacity of its Altamira automobile sheet plant in Mexico from 400,000 to 800,000 mt/year to meet increased carmaker’s demand in the country, according to a company official. The official said, "But the plan has not been finalized yet."

The automobile sheet plant in Altamira, an eastern port city, was just opened in late 2009 with a CGL (continuous galvanizing line) capacity of 400,000 mt/year. Posco, the world's third-largest steelmaker, spent $250 million on its first auto sheet plant built overseas. The plant supplies US carmakers with high quality auto sheet like galvanized sheet and hot dip galvanized steel. Of the total products, about 70% of are shipped to the US with only 30% sold in Mexico.

(Source:Platts)