Steel Mills
December 1, 2013
ThyssenKrupp Steel Americas: A Look Back
Written by Sandy Williams
The anticipation over the fate of ThyssenKrupp Steel Americas is finally over with the sale of the Calvert, Alabama mill to joint venture partners ArcelorMittal and Nippon Steel and Sumitomo Metal Corporation. The $1.55 billion sale gives ArcelorMittal a firm foothold in the Southeast and in the NAFTA auto market. Nippon Steel & Sumitomo Metal is already a strong supplier to Detroit with its 2.9 million ton finishing plant in Indiana. The acquisition is still subject to government regulatory approval and may stir up anti-trust concerns over the JV’s domination of the auto steel market.
ThyssenKrupp was unable to sell its 73 percent share of the TK CSA mill in Brazil but has worked a deal with the ArcelorMittal and NSSMC for CSA to supply 2 million tons of slab annually to Calvert for the next six years. The plant has a production capacity of 5 million tons of slab and the sale of 40 percent of its production to the US plant will improve its salability. ThyssenKrupp plans to focus on improving the operating performance at CSA and has already halved its operating losses by bringing the coke plant up to environmental standards and restarting the blast furnace at the mill.
