3-million-ton steel plant

 

USD 1.2 Billion Invested to Build a 3-Million-Ton Steel Plant!

Fujian Enterprises Deepen Cooperation in Kazakhstan,

China-Kazakhstan Production Capacity Cooperation Flourishes

In April 2026, the Ministry of Trade and Integration of Kazakhstan announced that China’s Fujian Province is accelerating cooperation with Kazakhstan in the construction of production facilities and the entry of Chinese enterprises, with a total planned investment of up to USD 1.2 billion. Among them, the 3‑million‑ton steel plant project led by Fujian Hengwang Investment Co., Ltd. has signed a formal cooperation agreement. Localized projects in textiles, heavy machinery, electrical equipment and other fields are also being promoted simultaneously. Subnational production capacity cooperation between China and Kazakhstan is becoming a new highlight of the joint construction of the Belt and Road Initiative.
As a flagship project of this cooperation, Fujian Hengwang Investment will build a short‑flow integrated steel plant with an annual capacity of 3 million tons in the Silk Road Industrial Park, Zhambyl Region, Kazakhstan. The total investment of the project reaches USD 1.2 billion (approximately RMB 8.7 billion), and it will directly create about 2,500 jobs upon completion.
The project adopts a phased construction model:
  • Civil construction officially started in April 2025
  • Phase I will be put into operation in 2027 with an annual capacity of 1 million tons
  • Phase II expansion will be completed in 2029 to achieve full production of 3 million tons
Its products mainly include wire rod, deformed steel bar, strip steel and section steel, covering both the domestic market of Kazakhstan and export channels.
Relying on local resource advantages, the steel plant will give priority to using local raw materials such as natural gas, iron ore and lime from Karaganda, Kostanay and other regions. A 350MW gas turbine power plant will also be built in Phase II to ensure stable operation. Technically, the project adopts the DRI + electric arc furnace steelmaking process, which reduces carbon emissions by 40%–60% compared with the traditional blast furnace process, in line with the global trend of green metallurgy.
From preliminary preparation to implementation, the project completed its full layout in only two years:
  • Starting in 2023, the Fujian Hengwang team conducted research in Africa, Central Europe and other places, finally choosing Kazakhstan
  • In 2024, it completed key steps including field inspections, project signing, registration of overseas subsidiaries, and land signing in the industrial park
  • In 2025, the project was approved by the Fujian Provincial Development and Reform Commission and entered the substantive implementation stage
During this period, the Prime Minister of Kazakhstan met with senior executives of the company many times to support the project’s implementation.
The cooperation between Fujian and Kazakhstan is not limited to the steel industry but builds a localised production system with multi-industrial coordination. Kazakhstan is conducting in‑depth negotiations with a number of Chinese enterprises:
  • Discussing spinning production and raw material deep‑processing projects with Jinyuan Textile
  • Planning a lifting equipment production base and engineering center with Weihua Heavy Machinery
  • Negotiating transformer and electrical product manufacturing with Shenda Electric
  • Promoting synthetic fiber and chemical processing cooperation with Jinlun High‑Tech Fiber
These efforts help Kazakhstan build a high value‑added industrial chain, introduce new technologies and achieve localized production.
Arman Shakkaliev, Minister of Trade and Integration of Kazakhstan, stated that as a strong industrial and export province in China, Fujian enables precise provincial‑level cooperation. Kazakh products can efficiently enter southern China and ASEAN markets through Fujian’s ports, opening new channels for two‑way trade.
Data shows that trade volume between Kazakhstan and Fujian Province reached USD 522 million in 2025. With the implementation of a number of industrial projects, bilateral economic and trade scale is expected to continue expanding.
From single project investment to full industrial chain cooperation, the industrial linkage between Fujian and Kazakhstan is a practical practice of China’s advantageous production capacity “going global” and an important support for Kazakhstan’s industrial modernisation. As a typical result of the alignment between the Belt and Road Initiative and Kazakhstan’s Bright Path new economic policy, these projects will continue to deepen mutually beneficial cooperation between China and Kazakhstan, injecting sustained impetus into industrial upgrading and regional economic integration in Central Asia.