The plant to be located in Yesan, 134 kilometres south of Seoul, will produce steel sheets by using hot-stamping, a technique that applies special pressing and cooling simultaneously, thereby making them stronger than other conventional products.

The technique helps reduce the amount of materials needed to make high-strength steel sheets for vehicles, which eventually helps cut costs and lightens the overall weight of car bodies.

The company already runs similar factories in Ulsan and Dangjin in South Korea and Tianjin, China. It is also building another one in Yesan, near where the new factory will be located.

When the two factories are completed, the company expects to produce a total of 35.8 million sheets of hot-stamping steel per year, up from the current 21.4 million.

The company supplies specialized steel products for two of Korea’s automakers, Hyundai Motor Company and Kia Motors Corporate.