Danieli SpA was awarded a half billion U.S. dollar turnkey project to construct the Toussa Steel Mill.

Toussa Steel mill is expected to be the largest steel mill in Ethiopia with an estimated annual production capacity of 1.3 million tons.

Toussa was licensed with the Ethiopian Investment Agency in July of last year and plans on producing reinforcement bars, billets and hollow sections among other steel products. The factory will go on to produce steel railway tracks in its second phase.

It is to be remembered that nine international companies from China Germany, France, South Korea and Italy had shown initial interest in the tender put out by Toussa last December. The management for the steel mill, led by Chief Executive Haile Assegdie, announced a shortlist of two Chinese companies and Danieli SpA in June.

The Toussa Steel project office led by Shimeles Eshete (Eng.) evaluated the technical and financial proposal of the companies before selecting Danieli SpA.

Toussa Steel being constructed in the Amhara Regional State is part of MIDROC Ethiopia, largely owned by Ethiopian born Saudi billionaire Mohammed Hussein Ali Al-Amoudi. The steel factory will be in addition to the 14 long and flat steel manufacturers already operating in Ethiopia with the combined production capacity of more than one million tons.

Danieli SpA is the largest steel plant manufacturer in Italy known for the production of rolling mills for steel melting and long products, and refining processors for steel production. The company has supplied 90 turnkey plants across the world since 1967 according to their website.