ArcelorMittal highlights the quality, capability and ambition of its Indian steelmaking joint venture

2022-09-28

Sep. 27, 2022 - ArcelorMittal, the world’s leading steel and mining company, today hosted an investor and analyst event at AM/NS India’s flagship plant at Hazira, Gujarat, the first such meeting since ArcelorMittal and Nippon Steel jointly acquired the Indian asset in December 2019.  

The event focused on the progress AM/NS India has achieved since the acquisition completed and the strategic initiatives being undertaken to transform AM/NS India into a best-in-class, integrated steel producer capable of producing high-added value products, grow its domestic market share and play a leading role in the growth of the Indian steel industry. 

Presentations given by Aditya Mittal, ArcelorMittal CEO and Chairman of AM/NS India and members of the AM/NS India management committee, focussed on: 

1. AM/NS India’s commitment to reaching levels of industry excellence in all aspects of ESG performance, with a specific focus on health and safety, diversity and inclusion and decarbonisation. 

2. The scope and scale of AM/NS India’s steelmaking business and its leading position in the Indian steel industry. 

3. The improvement achieved in AM/NS India’s financial and operational performance since acquisition, with significant growth in its steel production and Ebitda generation, and strong progress in reducing net debt and strengthening its balance sheet. 

4. Efforts to secure the company’s supply chain and enhance profitability through several strategic acquisitions of a range of assets including slurry pipelines, iron ore mines, ports, power plants and land. 

5. How AM/NS India intends to lead the decarbonisation of the Indian steel industry by integrating renewables into its energy supply chain and exploring the use of a range of decarbonisation technologies over the next decade. 

6. The significant market growth opportunity India presents and AM/NS India’s strategy to play a leading role in the development of the Indian steel industry by expanding the capacity of its Hazira plant, initially to c. 15 million tonnes by early 2026 in the first phase of its expansion. 

The planned expansion of the Hazira facility comes almost three years since the asset was acquired and renamed AM/NS India. Since then, AM/NS India has made strong progress on performance and debottlenecking at Hazira by applying the global best practices of its parent companies and investing in technology and R&D. The company is now a self-sustaining, free cash-flow generating business, strongly positioned in a rising market to deliver long-term value to its employees, its communities, the Indian steel industry, and its shareholders.  

Hazira’s planned expansion reflects ArcelorMittal and Nippon Steel’s confidence in the long-term prospects for the Indian economy, which is forecast to grow strongly for the next two decades. Addressing the group of ArcelorMittal’s investors and analysts, Aditya Mittal cited as strengths the scale, strategic location, and secure supply chain that make AM/NS India well-positioned to capture the growth opportunities presented by a domestic steel market which has the potential to grow to 300 million tonnes per annum by 2030. In addition to volume growth, AM/NS India is focussed on leading the decarbonisation of the Indian steel industry and will also increase its production of high grade, speciality steels in key growth sectors such as automotive and infrastructure, aligned with India’s national steel policy and key policy initiatives such as Atmanirbhar Bharat.