Norsk Hydro Spends 315 Million Kroner on Suzhou Plant

Bloomberg jan 18--Norsk Hydro ASA, Europe’s third- largest aluminum producer, will invest 315 million kroner （$54 million） to extend its Suzhou plant near Shanghai as it boosts sales to China’s construction and auto industries.

The investment includes two new extrusion presses, the Oslo-based company said today in a statement. The expansion will help Hydro meet demand in China, the world’s biggest market for aluminum products and components, it said.

Aluminum makers including United Co. Rusal, the world’s largest, are expanding their Asian business as demand surges in the region and consumption in developed nations remains subdued. At Suzhou, Hydro produces precision aluminum tubing for applications such as cars, heaters and refrigerators.

The Norwegian company plans to begin output at the first press in mid-2012, and at the second several months later, according to the statement. The expansion will bring to three the number of presses at the plant.

The company has had a “tremendous development in China,” Chief Financial Officer Jorgen Arentz Rostrup said in an interview in Oslo on Jan. 13. “We are very eager to develop that business.”