Contracts worth 240 thousand metric tons of steel to support western China hydropower projects

BEIJING, Jan. 19 /PRNewswire-Asia-FirstCall/ -- General Steel Holdings, Inc. ("General Steel" or the "Company") (NYSE: GSI), one of China's leading, non-state-owned producers of steel products and aggregators of domestic steel companies, today announced it won two contracts to supply an aggregate 240,000 metric tons of steel to support the Xi Luo Du and the Xiang Jia Ba hydropower projects both located in western China.

Pursuant to the Xi Luo Du hydropower project contract, the Company will supply 135,000 metric tons of rebar during years 2010 through 2013, with 60,000 metric tons estimated for shipment in 2010. Pursuant to the Xiang Jia Ba hydropower project contract, the Company will supply 105,000 metric tons of rebar during years 2010 through 2013, with 40,000 metric tons estimated for shipment this year. The Company's Longmen Joint Venture won both contracts as a "lead-supplier" and will supply 50% of construction steel needed for both projects.

"Our Longmen Joint Venture facility continues to be extremely well-positioned, both geographically and strategically, to benefit from ongoing government investment in rural China's infrastructure development," said General Steel's Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Henry Yu. "With a strong reputation for quality production, these contract wins will enhance our Longmen facility's market advantage in the western inland region, particularly in Sichuan and Yunnan provinces, and we will play a more important role as a construction steel producer in this rapidly developing area."

Located in Sichuan province, the Xi Luo Du hydropower project is one of four large hydropower projects currently under construction on the Jin Sha river. It is expected to generate electrical energy of 57.1 billion kilowatts and will be the third largest hydropower plant in the world and second largest in China. The total investment of this project is approximately RMB79.2 billion, or approximately US$11.6 billion.

The Xiang Jia Ba hydropower project is located at the junction of Sichuan and Yunnan provinces. It is expected to generate electrical energy of 30.7 billion kilowatts. The total investment for this project is approximately RMB28.9 billion, or approximately US$4.25 billion.

About General Steel Holdings, Inc.

General Steel Holdings, Inc., (NYSE: GSI), headquartered in Beijing, China, operates a diverse portfolio of Chinese steel companies. With 6.3 million metric tons of aggregate production capacity, its companies serve various industries and produce a variety of steel products including rebar, hot-rolled carbon and silicon sheet, high-speed wire and spiral-weld pipe. General Steel Holdings, Inc. has steel operations in Shaanxi and Guangdong provinces, Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region and Tianjin municipality. For more information, please visit http://www.gshi-steel.com .

Information Regarding Forward-Looking Statements

This press release may contain certain forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These statements are based on management's current expectations or beliefs about future events and financial, political and social trends and assumptions it has made based on information currently available to it. The Company cannot assure that any expectations, forecasts or assumptions made by management in preparing these forward-looking statements will prove accurate, or that any projections will be realized. Actual results could differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking statements as a result of inaccurate assumptions or a number of risks and uncertainties. These risks and uncertainties are set forth in the Company's filings under the Securities Act of 1933 and the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 under "Risk Factors" and elsewhere, and include: (a) those risks and uncertainties related to general economic conditions in China, including regulatory factors that may affect such economic conditions; (b) whether the Company is able to manage its planned growth efficiently and operate profitable operations, including whether its management will be able to identify, hire, train, retain, motivate and manage required personnel or that management will be able to successfully manage and exploit existing and potential market opportunities; (c) whether the Company is able to generate sufficient revenues or obtain financing to sustain and grow its operations; (d) whether the Company is able to successfully fulfill our primary requirements for cash; and (e) other risks, including those disclosed in the Company's Form 10-K, filed with the SEC. Forward-looking statements contained herein speak only as of the date of this release. The Company does not undertake any obligation to update or revise publicly any forward-looking statements, whether to reflect new information, future events or otherwise.

    For investor and media inquiries, please contact:

    In China:

     Jing Ou-Yang
     General Steel Holdings, Inc.
     Tel:   +86-10-5879-7346
     Email: jing.ouyang@gshi-steel.com

     Justin Knapp
     Ogilvy Financial, Beijing
     Tel:   +86-10-8520-6556
     Email: gsi@ogilvy.com

    In the United States:

     Jessica Barist Cohen
     Ogilvy Financial, New York
     Tel:   +1-646-460-9989
     Email: gsi@ogilvy.com

SOURCE General Steel Holdings, Inc.

Back to top

RELATED LINKS
http://www.gshi-steel.com