SteelAsia Manufacturing Corp. announced last Sunday that the steel beams manufacturing plant it is building in Lemery, Batangas is expected to start operations in 2023.

The project broke ground in 2019, the company said. "Construction of the two production lines -- steelmaking and steel section rolling -- was suspended due to the Covid-19 lockdown," it noted.

The facility is estimated to have an annual capacity of about 1.1 million tons.

SteelAsia, which currently has plants in Davao, Cebu, Misamis Oriental, Batangas, and Bulacan, also noted the new facility in Batangas will recycle steel scrap, which is currently being exported.