The new galvanizing line at ArcelorMittal’s mill in Florange in north-eastern France is currently under construction, Kallanish learns from the company.
With start-up expected by the end of the year, the new line will eventually produce 800,000 tonnes of high-strength automotive steel over time and will ultimately employ 80 people, including 25 new hires.
“For this project, the region will provide support for the acquisition of equipment. The aim is to strengthen the future of the Florange site as a specialist in high value-added automotive steel,” ArcelorMittal reveals in a note. This is part of a major investment in the group’s automotive steel production in France. The company will spend a total of €96 million ($107.5m) on improving its facilities in Florange and Dunkerque (see Kallanish 30 July 2017).
Last year Florange set a new site record for galvanized steel production. Galvanizing line No. 1 at the site attained an output of 500,000t of galvaized product in 2018, a record for the line.
The ArcelorMittal site in Florange employs 2,300 people and produces 7 million tonnes/year of steel mainly for the automotive and packaging sectors, Kallanish notes.