The world''s sixth largest and Asia''s first integrated steel company, Tata Steel, have signed a Memorandum of Cooperation (MoC) with Vietnam''s largest steel company, Vietnam Steel Corporation, the largest steel company in Vietnam.

The MoC was signed between Dau Van Hung, president of Vietnam Steel Corporation and T Mukherjee, deputy managing director, Tata Steel in New Delhi today at an event also attended by Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung of Vietnam and Dr Manmohan Singh and other dignitaries from both the countries.

Through the memorandum of cooperation, Tata Steel will co-operate with Vietnam Steel in the areas of training and development of the VSC employees, assistance in product development, development of Vietnamese markets, sharing of know-how in steel making and mining and will also assist VSC in developing a steel strategy for Vietnam.

Earlier, on May 29, 2007, Tata Steel had entered into a Memorandum of Understanding with VSC for the proposed steel and mining projects in Ha Tinh province in Vietnam. In this relation, the Honourable Prime Minister of Vietnam, H E Nguyen Tan Dung also visited the Tata Steel plant in Jamshedpur during his current visit to India and he reaffirmed his full support to Tata Steel for the projects in Vietnam.

This Cooperation memorandum is another step by Tata Steel to strengthen the partnership with VSC and its commitment to be a ''Partner in Progress'' with the Socialist Republic of Vietnam.

Earlier in the week, the Vietnamese PM had pledged full support to Tata Steel in setting up its proposed 4.5-million-tonne steel complex in the Ha Tinh province and through it Tata Steel will be entitled to participate in Thach Khe iron ore mining project with an equity contribution of 30 per cent.

As part of his India visit at the invitation of Dr Manmohan Singh, the visiting Vietnamese PM, visited Tata Steel''s Jamshepur steel plant.