China Baowu Partners with Algerian Ministry for El Hadjar Complex
Algeria's Ministry of Industry, led by Minister Yahia Bachir, has initiated a significant partnership with China Baowu Steel Group for the rehabilitation and development of the El Hadjar steel complex. This collaborative effort, following a series of consultations, seeks to revitalize the crucial industrial asset. Representatives from the Chinese group, including its subsidiaries and China Road and Bridge Corporation, met with officials from the Algerian National Iron Industry Company and the Sider and Algerian Steel industrial groups at the Ministry's headquarters to advance the project.
This initiative forms a core part of an integrated plan by the Ministry of Industry to modernize El Hadjar's production capabilities, improve its overall performance, and maximize its industrial assets. The plan also aims to fully integrate the complex into a comprehensive national iron and steel system. China Baowu Steel Group, a state-owned enterprise headquartered in Shanghai and recognized as a global leader in the steel sector, brings extensive international experience, particularly in modern technologies, industrial digitization, direct reduction, and the production of direct reduced iron (DRI) and hot briquetted iron (HBI), alongside advancements in green steel development and carbon footprint reduction.
Minister Bachir's prior assessment of the El Hadjar complex highlighted its considerable industrial base and significant potential, while also noting that some equipment had reached the end of its operational life. This necessitates an urgent program for modernization and equipment replacement to align the complex with international standards for productivity, efficiency, and competitive performance. The rehabilitation strategy is built on four main pillars: adopting cutting-edge technologies for production modernization, achieving full value chain integration from direct iron reduction to final products, fostering win-win international industrial partnerships, and generating substantial added value and new job opportunities to bolster Algeria's industrial sovereignty.
As part of the agreed-upon work program, the Chinese group is expected to submit its final technological vision for the project, along with a detailed implementation roadmap, before the end of September. This structured timeline underscores a commitment to quickly advance the project, which will also involve further technical meetings, site visits to El Hadjar, and coordination with relevant ministerial sectors and institutions, including those in mining, energy, and hydrocarbons.
