The Merger Process
2006 was a very exciting and challenging year for ArcelorMittal. The new company was at the forefront of the consolidation process, leading the industry through mergers and acquisitions.
January 2006 Historic moment for the Global Steel Industry
The year started with the historic launch of the Mittal Steel offer to the shareholders of Arcelor to create the world's first 100 million tonne plus steel producer. The aim of increasing globalisation and consolidation, necessary in the steel industry, defines the deal and sets the pace for the industry.
February 2006 - Expansion and strong results
Mittal Canada completes the acquisition of three Stelco subsidiaries, the Norambar and Stelfil plants, located in Quebec, and the Stelwire plant in Ontario. Stelfil and Stelwire will add 250,000 tonnes of steel wire to the company's annual production capacity, providing a wider product mix to better meet customers' needs.
Arcelor acquires a 38.41% stake in Laiwu Steel Corporation, in China. Laiwu Steel Corporation is China's largest producer of sections and beams, and will further boost its operational excellence thanks to this partnership. It is still awaiting approval with the Beijing authorities.
April 2006 - Renewal after Hurricane Katrina and new galvanised line
Out of the devastation of Hurricane Katrina, arose a revitalised Mississippi youth baseball field, rebuilt with the help of Mittal Steel USA and Arcelor. The company provides money towards the purchase of lighting fixtures and steel cross bar support. It also arranges for and donates the labour costs for their installation.
Mittal Steel USA places a new line into operation in Cleveland to provide top-quality galvanised sheet steel to automakers and other demanding customers. The new line is designed to produce in excess of 630,000 tonnes of corrosion-resistant sheet annually, using the hot-dip galvanising process.
May 2006 - US clears the way for bid
Mittal Steel announces US antitrust clearance for Arcelor bid and the approval of the offer documents by European regulators. The acceptance period starts in Luxembourg, Belgium and France on 18 May 2006 (some days later for Spain and the United States) and lasts until 29 June 2006.
Arcelor contributes to the first anti-seismic school building in Izmit (Turkey), where a school building had been destroyed by an earthquake in 1999.
June 2006 - Historic agreement to create the No.1 Global Steel Company
Creating the world's largest steel company, Mittal Steel and Arcelor reach an agreement to combine the two companies in a merger of equals. The terms of the transaction were reviewed by the Boards of Arcelor and Mittal Steel which each recommended the transaction to their shareholders. The combined group, domiciled and headquartered in Luxembourg, is named Arcelor Mittal.
Demonstrating the commitment to extend markets in developing nations, a strategic partnership between Arcelor Mittal and SNI (Société Nationale d'Investissement) is concluded concerning the development of Sonasid. This consolidates and develops the position of Sonasid on the Moroccan market, allowing the company to benefit from the transfer of Arcelor Mittal's technologies and skills in the long carbon steel product sector.
September 2006 - New dividend policy
Arcelor Mittal announces new dividend policy, under which it will pay out 30% of net income annually.
93.7% of Arcelor shareholders tender their shares to Mittal Steel.
Arcelor Mittal confirms Value Plan up to 2008.
December 2006 - Deals, deals, deals!
Arcelor Mittal sells Thüringen long carbon steel plant to Grupo Alfonso Gallardo for €591 million euros, as part of Mittal Steel's commitments to the European Commission.
Arcelor Mittal and the Government of Liberia conclude the review of the Mining Development Agreement. With this agreement giving access to iron ore mining, with capacity of 15 million tonnes a year, the Liberian Government and Arcelor Mittal will be partners in jumpstarting economic recovery and development for Liberia. The USUS$1 billion investment will bring around 3,500 direct jobs and 15,000 to 20,000 indirect jobs.
Arcelor Mittal sells the Italian long carbon steel production Travi e Profilati di Pallanzeno and San Zeno Acciai to Duferco for €117 million, as part of Mittal Steel's commitment to the European Commission.
Arcelor Mittal acquires Sicartsa, the leading Mexican long steel producer. Sicartsa is a fully integrated producer of long steel with an annual production capacity of about 2.7 million tonnes, and with production facilities in Mexico and Texas. This combination of Sicartsa with Mittal Steel Lázaro Cárdenas leads to the creation of Mexico's largest steel producer with an annual capacity of 6.7 million tonnes.
Arcelor Mittal signs a Memorandum of Understanding for the Greenfield project in Orissa, India. The aim is to set up steelmaking operations in the Keonijhar District. The integrated steel plant should have a total annual capacity of 12 million tonnes. This would include captive mining facilities, captive power supply, water supply infrastructure and other facilities including setting up townships for employees.
The first slab in the new continuous caster in Dabrova has been produced and represents a key step of the successful restructuring of Arcelor Mittal Poland. Other projects had been achieved earlier, such as the relining of a blast furnace in September 2006, the commissioning of the new colour coating line in Huta Florina. The start-up of a new hot strip mill in Krakow is foreseen in the first half of 2007.
Arcelor Mittal says EBITDA will be higher in 2007 than in 2006.