Veolia has been selected by Tangshan Iron & Steel (TIS), a subsidiary of China’s largest steelmaker Hebei Iron & Steel Group (HBIS), to build and operate industrial water treatment and recycling facilities for two of TIS’s industrial projects in Hebei province, China. Over the duration of the two 30-year contracts, total cumulative revenue for Veolia will amount to €390 million.
For these facilities, Veolia has formed a joint venture with TIS, in which Veolia holds 60%. The joint venture consolidates Veolia’s cooperation with one of the world’s biggest steel companies. TIS is the major branch of HBIS, one of the top three iron and steel makers in the world and the largest steelmaker in China. Veolia has been providing enlarged technical assistance to its steel production site in Chengde, Hebei, since 2012. TIS is a state-owned listed company located in eastern Hebei, close to one of the three biggest iron mines in China.
“Veolia’s mission and capabilities in the downstream mining industry go beyond the provision of standard water supply to our customers. We can indeed provide them with a competitive advantage, by optimizing in particular their water management processes. We thereby help this prestigious industrial client to better grasp the future of its industry: cleaner and more productive mines and industrial processes, with lower environmental impact and greater economic performance,” said Antoine Frérot, chairman and CEO of Veolia. “I am delighted that Tangshan Iron & Steel has chosen Veolia to accompany it in its strong growth in China.”
In Tangshan, Veolia will build a facility to treat wastewater, and to recycle and cool water to cater to the needs of TIS’s two new projects, a coking plant and a gas liquefaction plant. The facility will be shared by the two TIS facilities and will enable the reuse of 60% of the water. Operation of the plants is expected to begin in the second half of 2014.
The two projects are located in a strategic economic corridor linking the two major regions of northeast and north China. The coking plant, to be operated by TIS and Shanxi Meijin Energy, one of the largest manufacturers of coke in China, and the liquefied natural gas plant are part of TIS’s comprehensive plan to ensure continuous steel production, for which the supply of coke is vital, and to commit to achieving the highest environmental standards in its industry.
Source: Veolia Environnement
