OREANDA-NEWS. August 28, 2014. ArcelorMittal has invested around USD 267m in the past four years in its site in Duisburg, Germany, of which USD 180m was spent on a state-of-the-art wire rod mill.

The new wire rod mill can process high-strength and ultra-high-strength steels, using the latest technologies to enable thermo-mechanical rolling processes. A new factory laboratory has also been installed alongside the rod mill, to assure the quality of the products.

ArcelorMittal continues to invest in the Ruhrort site as well. The changeover to a symmetrical format for continuous casting line two offers customers in the automotive supply sector high-quality steel ingots for producing forgings. For example, these include gearbox parts, which create less vibration in the engine and therefore reduce noise emissions.

"We are investing US\\$8.6m in the format change in order to adapt the plant to future requirements and to increase our competitiveness. After construction of the new wire rod mill, this is the next step towards securing the future of jobs and steel production in Duisburg," commented Thorsten Brand, CEO at ArcelorMittal Duisburg.

Higher quality and more environmentally friendly
The planned investments will change the mould format of continuous casting line two from the current 265x385 mm (rectangular) to 320x320 mm (square). At the same time, this will improve the rolling tolerance, which will enhance the quality of the product.

The new format will also extend ArcelorMittal's product range and increase the flexibility of customers who process the steel to make forged parts such as gearboxes, crankshafts, gear wheels or axles, predominantly for use in commercial vehicles.

The investment will deliver forgings made from semi-products at ArcelorMittal Duisburg which will meet the highest requirements of the strict European guidelines on noise emissions for commercial vehicles.

Preparations for the investment project have already started and the plant refit will take place in mid-2015.

ArcelorMittal's Duisburg site supplies semi-products for forging, as well as high-strength and ultra-high-strength wire rods for the automotive industry and renewable energy applications (for example offshore wind farms), for fastening elements and machine building.