US cutting tool maker Kennametal Inc. has announced plans to open a new factory in Binhai New Area in north China's port city of Tianjin, promising 200 new jobs initially.

 

The factory will be the company's third and biggest in China.

 

The new plant, built at a cost of US$31 million, covers 15,000 square meters and would be expanded to 42,000 sq m, said Carlos Cardoso, the firm's president and chief executive.

 

The expansion would see the number of jobs exceed 400, said Cardoso.

 

The new plant will mainly produce blades, drills and wear parts for industrial use, and provide customers with customized equipment.

 

Kennametal, headquartered in Latrobe, Pa., USA, entered China in 1991. It has already set up a research and development laboratory in Tianjin.

 

The State Council designated Binhai New Area, with an area of 2,270 square kilometers, as an experimental zone for comprehensive reforms in early June.

 

(Xinhua News Agency August 15, 2006)