Voestalpine Says 25% of 2015 Investments Will be Outside Europe

By Jenny Busche

FRANKFURT--Voestalpine AG (VOE.VI), the Austrian specialty steel and technology company, will invest around a quarter of this year's investments outside of Europe, the head of the company said late on Monday.

Voestalpine plans to invest around 250 million euros ($283 million) annually over the next two years in the U.S., Chief Executive Officer Wolfgang Eder said. Most of the investments will go toward the company's specialty steel business but acquisitions are also possible, he added. Over the long term, Voestalpine plans to invest EUR50 million to EUR100 million annually in the U.S, compared with investments of between EUR5 million to EUR10 million a year at present.

Voestalpine is also looking to expand in China, where it is building three factories to produce automobile parts. One factory is already complete. The company is also due to decide on a EUR180 million investment in China to build a factory which would make stainless steel for the auto and machinery industries.

Voestalpine's growing focus outside of Europe can be traced back to the difficult business environment in the region and the high cost of energy.

"Industry is on the retreat in Europe," said Mr. Eder, who is also chairman of the World Steel Association. "If nothing is done in Europe on the energy side in the foreseeable future, we won't be able to be competitive," he added.

Voestalpine intends to keep its headquarters in Austria over the long term, he added.

(Nicole Lundeen in Vienna contributed to this article.)

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