Arcelor
 | |
| Company type | Société Anonyme |
|---|---|
| Industry | Steel |
| Predecessors | Arbed(1911) Aceralia(1902) Usinor(1948) |
| Founded | 18 February 2002 |
| Defunct | 2006 |
| Fate | Merged withMittal Steel |
| Successor | ArcelorMittal(2006) |
| Headquarters | , |
| Products | Steel |
| Revenue | €40.6 billion (2006) |
Number of employees | 103,935 (2006) |
| Website | arcelor |
Arcelor S.A.was the world's largeststeelproducer in terms of turnover and the second largest in terms of steel output, with a turnover of €30.2 billion and shipments of 45 million metric tons of steel in 2004. The company was created in 2002 by amergerof the former companiesAceralia(Spain),Usinor(France) andArbed(Luxembourg). Arcelor is now part ofArcelorMittalafter a takeover byMittal Steelin 2006.
Business
[edit]Once employing 310,000 employees in over 60 countries, it was a major player in all its main markets:automotive,construction,metal processing,primary transformation,household appliances,andpackaging,as well as general industry. With total sales of over €40 billion, Arcelor was, by 2006, one of the world's largest steel manufacturer in terms of turnover.
It produced long steel products, flat steel products and inox-steel.
In January 2006 Arcelor announced the acquisition ofDofasco,Canada's largest steel producer with an annual output of 4.4 million tons. After an intensebidding waragainst the GermanThyssenKrupp,Arcelor had finally bid 5.6 billionCanadian dollars.
Merger with Mittal Steel
[edit]The company was the target of ahostile takeover bidby its rivalMittal Steelon 27 January 2006.[1]However, the bid resulted in substantial increase in Arcelor's share value. Two members of the board of Arcelor,Guillermo UlaciaandJacques Chabanieralso resigned suddenly.[2]On 26 May 2006 Arcelor announced its intention to merge withSeverstal.There were questions about the intentions of Arcelor in announcing its merger withSeverstaldue to a perceived opacity in the transaction. But on 25 June 2006, the Arcelor board decided to go ahead with the merger withMittal Steel.Arcelor compensated Severstal €140 million for the failed merger attempt.Lakshmi Mittalbecame the president and Arcelor chairman Joseph Kinsch was appointed chairman of the new company until his retirement.[3][4]Arcelor's merger with Mittal created the worldwide leader in the steel industry, increasing its bargaining power with suppliers and consumers. Mittal Steel agreed to pay €40.37 a share to Arcelor, doubling its original offer.
Reaction to the takeover
[edit]Arcelor's directors strongly opposed the takeover, as did the governments of France, Luxembourg and Spain. The Belgian government, on the other hand, declared its stance as neutral and invited both parties to deliver abusiness planwith the future investments in research in the Belgian steel plants. The French opposition was initially very fierce and has been criticized in the Indian media as double standards andeconomic nationalismin Europe. Indian commerce ministerKamal Nathwarned that any attempt by France to block the deal would lead to atrade warbetween India and France.[5]
On 20 June, the above claim by economists was confirmed when Severstal increased its valuation of Arcelor. Management of Arcelor had in fact undervalued the company itself. The capability of management which had openly supported the previous valuation of Arcelor came into question. Further the combined markets of France, Belgium, Luxembourg and Spain chided Arcelor management and suspended trading of its stock.
On 26 June, the Board of Directors recommended the approval of the improved Mittal offer (49% improvement compared to the initial offer with 108% improvement of the cash component), proposed the creation of Arcelor-Mittal with industrial and corporate governance model based on Arcelor and scheduled a corporate meeting for 30 June to vote on this.[6]
Products
[edit]The products of Arcelor are divided into three groups: Flat steel products,long steel productsandstainless steel.
Flat steel products
[edit]The main production sites of flat steel products areGhent,Dunkirk,Avilés,Gijón,Fos-sur-Mer,Piombino,Liège,Florange,Bremen,Eisenhüttenstadtand recentlySão Francisco do Sulin Brazil.
See also
[edit]
References
[edit]- ^"Arcelor Board of Directors unanimously rejects Mittal's hostile proposal" retrieved from Arcelor on 2006-02-07ArchivedFebruary 2, 2006, at theWayback Machine
- ^"Management Board".Arcelor.Archived fromthe originalon 11 February 2006.Retrieved7 February2006.
- ^Arcelor agrees to Mittal mergerArchived2006-09-01 at theWayback Machineon International Herald Tribune
- ^Arcelor, Mittal decide to merge: ReportsArchived2023-01-07 at theWayback Machineon Rediff
- ^"India, EU back Mittal's bid on Arcelor".hindustantimes.Archived fromthe originalon 19 February 2006.
- ^Kanter, James; Timmons, Heather; Giridharadas, Anand (25 June 2006)."Arcelor agrees to Mittal takeover".The New York Times.ISSN0362-4331.Retrieved20 March2022.
External links
[edit]
- Arcelormittal: ArcelorMittal corporate website
- Arcelormittal: Constructalia
- Biz.Yahoo: "Arcelor SA Company Profile" (2004)—archived version.
- Nerve.in: Timeline of events for Arcelor-Mittal deal
- BBC News: "Mittal Steel unveils Arcelor bid"
- Agarwal Today:"Special Report, Lakshmi Mittal buys Arcelor" (2006)—archived version.
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