Group invests in wires for car industry
Folha de S. Paulo
This year ArcelorMittal is advancing in a project of expansion of 40% of the productive capacity of its joint venture in Brazil with the Belgian group Bekaert. The wire-drawing mill sector of ArcelorMittal Aços Longos will receive more than R$ 130 million (US$ 81.3 million). The investment is made by means of Belgo Bekaert Arames, partnership between ArcelorMittal and the Belgian group, which holds 45% of interest. With eight industrial units in Brazil, installed in Minas Gerais, São Paulo and Bahia, the productive capacity gets to 855 tons of drawn wire a year.
The wire-drawing mill that processes the steel is a unit that produces wires for industrial uses, in sectors such as construction and agriculture. The current investment should meet the increased demand in the country, according to Augusto Espeschit, President of ArcelorMittal Aços Longos for Central America and South America. "We have an increase in the consumption of long steels projected for the next five years at nearly 9%", he says.
The manufacture of wires for tires is in the focus. "Should we consider the growth of the production of cars in Brazil, besides those already running, there is a lot of market. An important part of the investment will cater to the automotive line". Espeschit also organizes today the main investment of the group in the country, the expansion of ArcelorMittal Monlevade. The US$ 1.2 billion project will double the annual production to 2.4 million tons of crude steel.