近日，中国民营钢铁公司中国东方集团宣布将与世界第二大钢铁公司、印度安赛乐米塔尔合作，共同在中国设立两家合营企业，双方各自持股50%。两家合营企业共计约投资26.6亿美元。

方达律师事务所、美国苏利文·克伦威尔律师事务所作为中国东方集团的律师参与交易；奋迅·贝克麦坚时为安赛乐米塔尔提供法律意见。

两家合营企业将分别落地河北唐山、江苏常州，预计将于2024年底开始建设，2026年投产运营。

根据咏竹坊报道，中国东方集团始于1980年代，原是河北的一家小型国有钢厂，后改制为民营企业，与2004年在香港上市。2009年，安赛乐米塔尔开始入股中国东方集团，目前是其第一大股东，持有37%的股份。

咏竹坊指出，由于中国钢铁行业持续低迷，中国东方集团称这次尝试为“高科技、绿色及数码”探索，旨在进军中国碳中和与EV市场相结合的高端产品。

合营企业将主要从事电工钢级热轧卷基板和冷轧无取向或取向电工钢的生产和销售，这些材料一直是汽车行业，尤其是高功率电动车型的重要材料。其预计还将参与在中国的光伏和风电项目的开发、投资、建设和运营。

本项目方达团队由合伙人潘思元和王骁轶牵头，知识产权业务合伙人云劭君提供了知识产权有关的专业支持。

苏利文团队由香港办公室管理合伙人吴基恩牵头。

奋迅·贝克麦坚时团队由奋迅高级合伙人施淼律师领导，团队成员还包括上海合伙人高翼、上海高级合伙人龚维樑、北京合伙人刘佳、北京合伙人韩冰等。

Fangda, S&C, Baker McKenzie FenXun on $2.6 bln China-India JV deal in the steel industry

Fangda Partners and Sullivan & Cromwell have advised China Oriental Group, a private Chinese steel company, on its two announced $2.66 billion joint ventures (JVs) in China. Baker McKenzie FenXun has acted as the sole deal counsel for ArcelorMittal, the Indian counterpart in the deal and the world’s second-largest steel company, for the project.

The two JVs will be located in Tangshan, Hebei, and Changzhou, Jiangsu, and are expected to start construction by the end of 2024, with operations beginning in 2026. Each party would hold a 50 percent stake in the JVs.

According to media reports, China Oriental Group was originally a small state-owned steel plant in Hebei, established in the 1980s. It later transitioned to a private enterprise and was listed in Hong Kong in 2004. ArcelorMittal began investing in China Oriental Group in 2009 and is currently its largest shareholder with a 37 percent stake.

Local media notes that, in light of the continued downturn in China’s steel industry, China Oriental Group refers to this initiative as an exploration into “high-tech, green, and digital” solutions, aimed at venturing into high-end products that combine carbon neutrality and the electric vehicle (EV) market in China.

The JVs will primarily engage in the production and sales of electrical steel grade hot-rolled coil substrates and cold-rolled non-oriented or oriented electrical steel, which has been a key material for the automotive industry, particularly for high-power EVs. They are also expected to participate in the development, investment, construction, and operation of photovoltaic and wind power projects in China.

The Fangda team was led by partners Pan Siyuan, Sam Wang, with assistance from partner Claudia Yun on IP issues.

The Sullivan team was led by Hong Kong office managing partner Kay Ian Ng.

The Baker McKenzie FenXun team was led by Shanghai-based Cherrie Shi from FenXun, with assistance from Shanghai partners Richard Gao, Alex Gong, and Beijing partners Laura Liu, and Han Bing.