China's National Development and Reform Commission has signed a second pledge with 18 provinces and cities on closing old steel-making facilities, bringing to 28 the number of provinces working on these closures.
According to the pledge, by 2010, 573 companies with facilities totally involved in 49.31 million tons of puddling capacity and 36.1 million tons of steel-making capacity will be closed.
In October 2007, NDRC issued the "Notice on Further Work on Shutting Down or Washing Out Backward Facilities of the Iron and Steel Industry" and strengthened the standard. By the end of November 2007, the first batch of 10 provinces and cities that signed the pledge with NDRC had closed 29.4 million tons of backward puddling facilities and 15.21 million tons of steel-making capacities that were causing environmental harm.
