NEW YORK, May 9, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Constellium N.V. (NYSE and NYSE Euronext: CSTM) and UACJ Corporation (UACJ) (5741: TSE) announced today that they have signed a Joint Venture Agreement to supply Body-in-White aluminum sheet to the North American automotive industry, following their January 2014 announcement of plans to collaborate in the North American Body-in-White market.
The JV will have an initial target capacity of 100,000 metric tons supplied by cold rolled coils from both partners' rolling mills. The facility, which will be located in Bowling Green, Kentucky, will be designed to allow for expansion beyond 100,000 tons. The total joint investment is expected to be approximately $150 million. Production is scheduled to start in the first half of 2016, with full capacity reached by 2018.
"Bowling Green is the right place for this plant, particularly because its central location will allow us to serve automotive OEMs across the US with our advanced and innovative range of products," commented Laurent Musy, President of Constellium's Packaging and Automotive Rolled Products business unit. "The availability of a highly skilled local labor force and the entrepreneurial spirit of the area were the decisive factors in choosing the city of Bowling Green and the state of Kentucky, which has been very supportive during the decision process".
"This project is very significant for UACJ in terms of our Body-in-White market strategy. We look forward to supplying automotive OEMs throughout the US with advanced products utilizing the technologies each party has separately developed in EU and Japan. We welcome this Joint Venture with Constellium to tackle the strategic automotive market in the U.S." said Mitsuru Okada, CEO of UACJ. "Both companies have been working hard together in the spirit of equal partnership, allowing us to finalize the agreement in a timely and efficient manner."
"We are honored to be chosen as the site for this facility and proudly welcome the Joint Venture to Bowling Green," stated Warren County Judge Executive, Michael Buchanon. "This is the largest capital investment in our region in more than a decade and we are grateful to the Joint Venture for their confidence in our community. This facility will be a perfect fit for our region which is an automotive hub. The strategic location we offer, coupled with access to a committed skilled workforce will allow the Joint Venture to thrive. We look forward to working with the Joint Venture and to their success here in Bowling Green."
"This is a great opportunity for UACJ and Tri-Arrows to participate in this dynamic growth segment for aluminum along with our partners at Constellium," said Patrick Franc, President and CEO of Tri-Arrows Aluminum Inc. "We are also very pleased with the choice of Bowling Green, which is in close proximity to the Logan rolling mill."
The finalization of the joint venture remains subject to regulatory approvals which are currently expected in the second half of 2014.
About Constellium
Constellium is a global sector leader that develops innovative, value added aluminium products for a broad scope of markets and applications, including aerospace, automotive and packaging. Constellium generated €3.5 billion of revenue in 2013. www.constellium.com
About UACJ
UACJ was established in October 2013 when Furukawa-Sky Aluminum and Sumitomo Light Metal Industries integrated their business operations. Both companies featured a distinguished history as aluminium producers in Japan. Together, their annual capacity for rolled sheet products exceeded 1 million tons, making them the largest such manufacturer in Japan and the third largest in the world. www.uacj.co.jp
About Tri-Arrows Aluminum Inc. (TAA)
Tri-Arrows Aluminum, Inc. was established in August 2011 when a Consortium of then- Sumitomo Light Metals Industries and Furukawa Sky Aluminum, in addition to Sumitomo Corporation and Itochu Group purchased the former ARCO Aluminum, Inc. TAA has long been an innovative leader in the supply and marketing of rolled aluminium can sheet to the North American container industry with annual production exceeding 325 thousand tons. www.triaa.com
Forward-looking Statements
Certain statements contained in this press release may constitute forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. This press release may contain "forward-looking statements" with respect to our business, results of operations and financial condition, and our expectations or beliefs concerning future events and conditions. You can identify forward-looking statements because they contain words such as, but not limited to, "believes," "expects," "may," "should," "approximately," "anticipates," "estimates," "intends," "plans," "targets," likely," "will," "would," "could" and similar expressions (or the negative of these terminologies or expressions). All forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties. Many risks and uncertainties are inherent in our industry and markets. Others are more specific to our business and operations. These risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to, the creation of a joint venture in the United States to produce Body-in-White aluminum sheet with UACJ Corporation, growth in the U.S. market for Body-in-White aluminum rolled products and those set forth under the heading "Risk Factors" in our recently filed Annual Report on Form 20-F and as described from time to time in subsequent reports filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. The occurrence of the events described, and the achievement of the expected results depend on many events, some or all of which are not predictable or looking statements contained in this press release. We undertake no obligation to publicly within our control. Consequently, actual results may differ materially from the forward-looking statements contained in this press release. We undertake no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statement as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required by law.
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SOURCE Constellium
