Austrian steel company voestalpine to maintain China expansion course

Austrian steel technology company, voestalpine, plans to stick to its plans to expand operations in China, despite a slowdown of growth there, CEO Wolfgang Eder said.

Eder said the lagging growth was a problem that may exist for a few years but that did not change the importance of China's position as a long-term strategic market.

"Short and medium-term distortions always exist," he said in an interview with state broadcaster ORF published Wednesday.

He said the company had felt no ill effects despite a market drop in demand for auto parts, and that its China operations, that currently employ 2,200 people in 24 locations, were "running as planned."

The Linz-based company would thus hold to its plans of constructing 10 new plants in China by 2020, he said.

The planned construction of a new steel plant in conjunction with Chinese company Kocel in the city of Yinchuan that was initially to begin in 2015 and be completed in 2017 would, however, be delayed.

Eder said an alternate location for the plant, that is to produce steel products for the Chinese automotive, consumer goods, and mechanical engineering industries, was a possibility.