[ferro-alloys.com]Swedish aluminum rolled products producer Granges said Friday it has ended plans to form a joint venture in the US with Mitsubishi Aluminum to manufacture aluminum materials for brazed automotive heat exchangers.

"Granges has decided to halt the plans for a joint venture in North America, as the project isn't sufficiently attractive for Granges from a risk-reward perspective given the current circumstances," Granges said in a statement.

"Granges and Mitsubishi will, however, continue the dialog about future business opportunities," it added.

A Granges spokeswoman did not immediately respond to an email seeking additional comment. Mitsubishi officials could not be reached for comment.

The planned JV was announced by Granges last November at the same time it unveiled plans to start construction of a $110 million aluminum rolling mill expansion in Tennessee.

Granges is increasing capacity at its Huntingdon, Tennessee, mill by 20% to 220,462 st/year from 176,369 st/year through the expansion, which is scheduled for completion in 2019.

Granges said it remains "strongly committed" to the North American market "and our current expansion plans remain on schedule."

The company said it was also exploring business opportunities for advanced aluminum materials for brazed automotive heat exchangers in North America.

• [Editor:王可]