By Alex MacDonald
LONDON--ArcelorMittal (MT, MT.FR, MT.AE) has invested 7 million
euros ($9.3 million) to adapt a galvanizing line at its Florange,
France, steel plant for the production of Usibor Alusi, a
lightweight steel product used to make automobiles, the steelmaker
said Thursday.
"This world-first gives both the Florange site and the
ArcelorMittal group a major competitive advantage...[in an]
extremely high-growth area," the Luxembourg-based company said.
The investment in Florange follows last year's agreement with
the French government to save all jobs affected by the mothballing
of two loss-making blast furnaces at the plant. As part of the
agreement, ArcelorMittal also committed to investing EUR180 million
in the plant over the next five years.
ArcelorMittal, the world's largest steelmaker by volume, said it
plans to invest an additional EUR55 million in the Florange site to
make the plant more competitive.
Usibor steel meets the requirements of customers in the
automotive industry to reduce the weight of their vehicles while
improving their safety in order to pass the Euro NCAP crash
tests.
Write to Alex MacDonald at alex.macdonald@dowjones.com