OREANDA-NEWS.  February 12, 2013. ArcelorMittal (referred to as “ArcelorMittal” or the “Company”) (MT (New York, Amsterdam, Paris, Luxembourg), MTS (Madrid)), the world’s leading integrated steel and mining company, today announced results[1] for the three and twelve-month periods ended December 31, 2012, reported the press-centre of ArcelorMittal.   

Highlights:
Health and safety performance improved in 2012 with an annual LTIF rate of 1.0x as compared to 1.4x in 2011

FY 2012 EBITDA of USD7.1 billion (down 30% y-o-y); 4Q 2012 EBITDA of USD 1.3 billion includes USD 0.2 billion from sale of carbon dioxide (CO2) credits and USD 0.2 billion gain on Paul Wurth stake disposal, offset by negative USD 0.1 billion from employee benefit charges

FY 2012 net loss of USD 3.7 billion includes USD 4.3 billion non-cash goodwill impairment and USD 1.3 billion charges related to Asset Optimization (of which USD 0.7 billion non-cash fixed asset impairments and USD 0.6 billion restructuring charges)

FY 2012 steel shipments of 83.8Mt (down 2.3% y-o-y); 4Q 2012 steel shipments of 20Mt down 2.7% vs. 4Q 2011

FY 2012 iron ore shipments of 54.4Mt (+5.4% y-o-y), of which 28.8Mt shipped at market prices (+2.6% y-o-y)

Net debt decreased by USD 1.4 billion during 4Q 2012 to USD 21.8 billion as of December 31, 2012 (despite USD 0.2 billion negative foreign exchange effects) due largely to improved cash flow from operations of USD 2.9 billion

Liquidity increased USD 1.1 billion to USD 14.5 billion at December 31, 2012, with an average debt maturity of 6.1 years

Essential components of Asset Optimization have been announced

Phase II expansion of Liberia from 4Mtpa direct shipped ore (“DSO”) to 15Mtpa concentrate approved by Board of Directors, with first concentrate production targeted in 2015

Outlook and guidance:

The Company expects reported EBITDA to be higher in 2013 as compared to 2012

Steel shipments are expected to increase by approximately 2-3% in 2013 as compared to 2012

Per-tonne steel margins are expected to improve marginally with the full benefits of Asset Optimization expected in 2H 2013

Marketable iron ore shipments  are expected to increase by approximately 20%; ArcelorMittal Mines Canada expansion (AMMC) to 24mtpa on track for ramp up during 1H 2013

2013 capital expenditure is expected to be approximately USD 3.5 billion

Approximately USD 5 billion of cash receipts expected in 1H 2013 from the capital raise in January 2013, and the announced agreed sale of a 15% stake in AMMC (assuming completion on schedule), should enable net debt to decline to approximately USD 17 billion by June 30, 2013

As previously announced, the Board of Directors proposes a USD 0.20/share dividend in 2013 (vs USD 0.75/share in 2012) to be paid in July 2013

Mr. Lakshmi N. Mittal, Chairman and CEO of ArcelorMittal, commented:

“2012 was a very difficult year for the steel industry, particularly in Europe where demand for steel fell a further 8.8%. During the year we took a number of important steps to address the challenges we face, including concentrating our operational footprint on our more competitive assets and reducing net debt.  Although we expect the challenges to continue in 2013, largely due to the fragility of the European economy, we have recently seen some more positive indicators, which combined with the measures we have implemented to strengthen the business, are expected to support an improvement in the profitability of our steel business this year.  Marketable iron ore shipments are also expected to increase by approximately 20% as a result of the expansion at ArcelorMittal Mines Canada.”

The conference call will include a brief question and answer session with senior management. The presentation will be available via a live webcast on www.arcelormittal.com