ArcelorMittal’s investments will increase this year and will go from 3,500 million euros in 2022 to between 4,500 and 5,000 million. Among the investments for 2023, 400 million are included to implement decarbonization plans such as the one planned for Gijón, which includes the replacement of a blast furnace with a direct iron ore reduction plant using green hydrogen and a hybrid arc furnace electricity powered by renewable energy.
The Asturias project will involve an investment of more than 1,000 million for which public aid of more than 50% is expected. In addition to Asturias, ArcelorMittal plans to launch investments to produce green steel in Germany, France, Belgium and Canada. Sources from the steel multinational pointed out yesterday that these plans are to be developed for five years and that budget planning – and the distribution of 400 million by 2023 – will depend on how these projects progress. At the moment, the one from Asturias is waiting for the European Commission to approve public aid. The UGT-FICA union demanded yesterday that the investment committee of the steel multinational ratify and approve the decarbonization plan for the Gijón plant. In its presentation of results, the ArcelorMittal leadership highlighted that the company “advances in key decarbonization projects in Europe”, including that of Asturias.
ArcelorMittal expects a rebound in the global steel market this year, leaving behind the production adjustments applied in recent months, which in Asturias meant the closure for more than four months of one of the two blast furnaces in Gijón.
The profits of the steel giant fell 38% during 2022 due to the contraction of the steel market, especially in the last months of the year, when the multinational decided to stop some of its main production facilities. In the last quarter, the drop in profit was 93%. However, the company earned a total of 8,667 million euros in 2022, one of the highest figures in its history. Sales totaled 74,398 million euros, 4.3% more due to the increase in prices, but the gross operating result (Ebitda) fell 27%, to 13,195 million euros.
“Despite the difficulties that arose as the year progressed, our results for the year demonstrate the benefits of our strengthened portfolio of assets and the improvements we have made to our cost structure. This, together with the mitigation measures that adopted in the second half to adapt production levels and optimize energy consumption, has strengthened the resilience of our company,” said Aditya Mittal, CEO of ArcelorMittal.
Steel production fell in 2022 by more than 10 million tons (from 69.1 to 59 million in 2022) and almost half of the cut corresponded to plants in Europe (from 36.7 to 31, 9 million tons). Production fell, but also net debt, which at the end of the year was 2,045 million euros, its historical minimum level.
“Our continued generation of positive cash flow and the strength of our balance sheet have allowed us to drive the growth and development of the company,” said Aditya Mittal, who was optimistic about the evolution of the steel market for 2023. ” Looking ahead, the data suggests that the movement of customers to reduce stocks, which occurred in the second half of 2022, has peaked, which will contribute to boosting steel consumption and the margins of steel products. Although high geopolitical uncertainty persists, we are confident in the strength and resilience of ArcelorMittal and in our ability to successfully carry out our strategy of growth, decarbonization and sustainable profitability in all phases of the cycle”, said the CEO of ArcelorMittal.
After knowing the results of 2022, UGT-FICA and CC OO yesterday requested the management in Spain to convene the negotiating table of the VIII Framework Agreement to agree on salaries that guarantee the purchasing power of employees. The general secretary of CC OO at ArcelorMittal, José Manuel Castro, pointed out that the workers have been on frozen wages for fourteen months and, if the company does not agree to a review, he does not rule out mobilizations. For its part, UGT-FICA positively assessed the increase in activity in Asturias after the start-up of the blast furnace “A” in Gijón began this week, understanding that this increase in production makes it impossible to renew the current ERTE (valid until March 31). ).