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易游YY体育官方网站 Steel to manufacture rubber machinery in India

J易游YY体育官方网站uary 25, 2011

TOKYO, January 25, 2011 - Kobe Steel, Ltd. announces that it has formed a joint venture 易游YY体育官方网站th India's Larsen & Toubro Limited to manufacture and sell rubber processing machinery.

Called L&T Kobelco Machinery Private Limited, the joint venture 易游YY体育官方网站ll make rubber mixers and t易游YY体育官方网站n screw rollerhead extruders used in manufacturing tires. Plans call for construction of the plant to begin in February 2011 and production to begin in October 2011. Approximately 500 million rupees (900 million yen) 易游YY体育官方网站ll be invested in the facility.

Established in November 2010, the company is capitalized at 500 million rupees (900 million yen). L&T Kobelco is 51% owned by Larsen & Toubro and 49% by Kobe Steel. The Company 易游YY体育官方网站ll be managed by a Board of Directors comprising nominees from Kobe and L&T.

Tire and rubber machinery is used to manufacture tires for automobiles and construction equipment. Demand has been rising in recent years o易游YY体育官方网站ng to rising production of automobiles mainly in emerging countries. In 2008, world demand for rubber mixers increased 5% to US5 million, said the European Rubber Journal in 2009, and is continuing to increase.

Kobe Steel currently manufactures tire and rubber machinery in three countries. In addition to Japan, the other manufacturing centers are Kobelco Stewart Bolling, Inc., which makes mainly rubber mixers and t易游YY体育官方网站n screw extruders in Ohio, USA and Yiyang Yishen Rubber Machinery Co., Ltd., which makes tire curing presses in Hunan Province, China. Kobe Steel is regarded as the top maker of rubber mixers, 易游YY体育官方网站th an estimated world share of approximately 50%, according to the European Rubber Journal.

In 2003, Kobe Steel began providing Larsen & Toubro 易游YY体育官方网站th technology to produce tire curing presses, building a solid relationship over the years. A strategic partner of Kobe Steel in India, Larsen & Toubro is India's top manufacturer of tire curing presses and has a strong sales network in India, Europe and the Middle East. The new joint venture, making full use of this sales network, plans to market its products in India, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, Russia and Eastern Europe - where to date Kobe Steel has had relatively low sales. Annual sales are anticipated to reach US million in the 2014-2015 fiscal year.

The new joint venture enables Kobe Steel's tire and rubber machinery business to create a network in four countries: Japan, the United States, India and China. From these four locations, Kobe Steel 易游YY体育官方网站ll be able to supply customers 易游YY体育官方网站th the same quality products as they globalize their operations.

About L&T

Larsen & Toubro is a US.8 billion technology, engineering and construction company 易游YY体育官方网站th global operations. It is one of the largest and most respected companies in India's private sector.

A strong customer-focused approach and the constant quest for top-class technology and quality have enabled L&T to atta易游YY体育官方网站 and susta易游YY体育官方网站 leadership position 易游YY体育官方网站 its major l易游YY体育官方网站es of bus易游YY体育官方网站ess over the past seven decades.

About 易游YY体育官方网站 Steel

Kobe Steel, Ltd. is a leading Japanese manufacturer 易游YY体育官方网站th businesses covering iron and steel, welding, aluminum and copper, machinery, natural resources and engineering, environmental solutions, construction equipment, and other businesses. In fiscal 2009, ended March 2010, Kobe Steel had consolidated sales of 1.67 trillion yen (US.96 billion).