Taiwan's China Steel to invest in Australia mine

China Steel Corp, Taiwan's largest steel producer, said its board of directors had approved a plan to invest about Aus$102 million ($110 million) in an Australian coal mine. It will pay Aus$50 million for a 10 percent stake in the MDL 162 coal mine, which is located in Queensland and owned by Australia's MCG company, it said in a statement, released on Tuesday. In addition, the Taiwanese company will spend Aus$52 million on new facilities and other capital expenditures, according to the statement. The deal is expected to yield an annual 600,000 tonnes of furnace coal for China Steel, which plans to ship it back to the island for use there, it said. The steelmaker, which has investments in Australia, Brazil and South Korea, has been exploring overseas opportunities in a bid to boost supply amid growing demand. In 2009, China Steel paid $95 million for a stake in Brazil's Namisa SA, its first investment in a foreign iron ore miner. China Steel imports about 20 million metric tonnes of iron ore every year mainly from Australia and Brazil. Earlier reports indicated the company was planning to spend about $2.5 billion over the next few years on stakes in overseas coal and iron ore mines.