Spain will continue cooperation with ArcelorMittal to secure the future of its plants

Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez has assured ArcelorMittal’s management of the government’s commitment to working with the company to secure the future of its plants in the country, Nortes reports.

During the World Economic Forum in Davos, Sanchez met with ArcelorMittal Chairman Lakshmi Mittal and CEO Aditya Mittal.

“We will continue to work with the company in the near future to guarantee the future of Arcelor’s plants,” Sanchez said on social media.

He said that he had discussed with the management of the global steel company its presence in Spain and the future of these assets in the current geopolitical context.

According to the Spanish press, the head of the Asturias executive branch, Adrian Barbon, called the meeting good news. He assured that the regional authorities intend to continue working to ensure that the decarbonization process is completed.

As GMK Center reported earlier, at the end of 2024, ArcelorMittal announced that it was postponing its planned green investments in the EU, citing regulatory uncertainty in the bloc. In particular, the company said it has postponed a final investment decision on a 2.3 million tpa hydrogen-based direct reduction plant in its Gijon cluster in Spain.

In May 2024, ArcelorMittal began construction of a 1.1 million tonne electric arc furnace in Gijón. In addition, the company is successfully advancing its efforts to increase production to 1.6 million tons by 2026 at the Sestao plant.

Earlier in April, the Spanish government approved €450 million in financing for ArcelorMittal’s low-carbon steel project in Gijón, which includes an integrated plan for a cluster of four plants. The total investment in the project is about €1 billion, with the bulk of it earmarked for a DRI plant that will replace one of the existing blast furnaces and power a new EAF. DRI was also planned for another electric arc furnace in Sestao.