Luxembourg-based global steelmaker ArcelorMittal has announced its Latin American investment plans with Kortrijk, Belgium-based Bekaert, one of the world's largest steel cord and wire manufacturers.
Accordingly, in Brazil, ArcelorMittal is transferring a 55 percent stake in its Belgo Bekaert Arames (BBA) ropes plant in Osasco, Sao Paulo to the Bekaert group. This transaction does not change ArcelorMittal's control of the shareholding structure of BBA, a partnership established with Bekaert in Brazil in 1997.
In Costa Rica, where ArcelorMittal is the market leader with a production of 370,000 mt per year of long carbon steel for the construction, manufacturing and agricultural industries, the agreement involves the drawn wires business which includes the existing steel wire plant and a new steel fibers plant which will start production in the second quarter of 2014. In the drawn wires segment, ArcelorMittal will have a 27 percent stake, while Bekaert will hold the remaining 73 percent stake.