The €280m loan granted to ArcelorMittal by the European Investment Bank (EIB) backed by the Investment Plan for Europe will help to fund the group’s European research and development programme over the period 2021-2023.
This major funding initiative aims at supporting ArcelorMittal’s research activities and the associated capital expenditure in the field of environmental, climate and energy projects. It will help the group to reach its ambitious climate action goals and thus to reduce the environmental footprint of its manufacturing facilities, steel products and technological solutions. ArcelorMittal Europe has committed to reduce CO2 emissions intensity by 35% by 2030, with the ArcelorMittal group having set a 2050 net-zero emissions target.
This partnership between the EIB and ArcelorMittal is backed by the European Fund for Strategic Investments (EFSI), the central pillar of the Investment Plan for Europe. In general, at least 40% of EFSI infrastructure and innovation projects aim to contribute to climate action in line with the Paris Agreement. This project will also contribute to EU industry’s leadership as provider of high-tech steel grades, products and solutions.
New products, process improvements and technical solutions are expected to bring significant positive environmental results, in terms of direct and indirect greenhouse gases emission reduction.
The research and development activities supported through the new investment will be carried out primarily in ArcelorMittal’s existing R&D facilities in France, Belgium, Luxembourg and Spain.
Greg Ludkovsky, Vice-President of ArcelorMittal and Head of Research and Development, said: “The role of our organisation, Global R&D, is to create the technological basis for ensuring ArcelorMittal’s long-term viability as the world’s leading steel and mining company. This funding will help Global R&D to further enable ArcelorMittal’s ambitions to reduce its environmental footprint in terms of its operations and its products. We will be able to expand our work to develop environmentally sustainable, high-added value, cost-effective and disruptive products and manufacturing processes.”
Ambroise Fayolle, EIB vice-president underlined the fact that «the signing of this agreement between the European public bank and ArcelorMittal will support a major European player in the steel industry with a deep focus on higher value-added steel products. These investments will play a key role in ArcelorMittal’s carbon footprint reduction strategy and therefore contribute to the European green deal, aligned with the terms of the 2015 Paris Agreement on climate change”.
Kris Peeters, Vice-President of the EIB, said: “I very much welcome this financing agreement which will support the innovation efforts of ArcelorMittal in the EU. I like the idea that the research will be carried out in several Member States, in a true European spirit. The steel sector is a vital sector for the European economy. As no other sector the steel sector is faced with the need to constantly reinvent itself and make its production processes more efficient and less burdensome vis-à-vis the environment. This requires a constant investment in innovation. I trust that through our support we help ArcelorMittal in its operations, help increasing the competitiveness of the company and thereby contribute to the EU’s leadership as provider of high-tech steel worldwide.”
European Commissioner for the Economy, Paolo Gentiloni, said: “Thanks to a guarantee from the Investment Plan for Europe, ArcelorMittal will invest €280 million into research and development activities to meet its climate goals and reduce the environmental footprint of its manufacturing facilities. This agreement shows that innovation is key to companies’ efforts to contribute to Europe’s climate commitments while staying competitive. I am looking forward to seeing many other companies follow suit.”
In 2017, the ArcelorMittal Group and the European Investment Bank (EIB) signed a financing agreement for €350m, supported by the Investment Plan for Europe, to help to fund the Group’s European research and development programme over the period 2017-2020.
In 2020, the EIB granted a €75m loan to ArcelorMittal supported by InnovFin Energy Demonstration projects and financed under Horizon 2020 and the NER 300 funding programme of the European Commission.
The funding supported the ArcelorMittal Group’s research and development activities and associated capital expenditure, in various fields:
- Innovative casting technologies
- Circular economy and CO2 reduction
- Alternative coatings to replace Chromium 6
- New rolling technologies for energy reduction
- Blast furnace decarbonisation
- Additive manufacturing for steel applications
- Development of innovative high strength steels for automotive
- Development of low loss electrical steel to improve engines’ energy retention
- Substrates and coatings for global energy transition applications (solar, windmills etc.)
Background information
About ArcelorMittal
ArcelorMittal is the world's leading steel and mining company, with a presence in 60 countries and primary steelmaking facilities in 17 countries. In 2020, ArcelorMittal had revenues of $53.3 billion and crude steel production of 71.5 million metric tonnes, while iron ore production reached 58.0 million metric tonnes. ArcelorMittal’s goal is to help build a better world with smarter steels. Steels made using innovative processes which use less energy, emit significantly less carbon and reduce costs. Steels that are cleaner, stronger and reusable. Steels for electric vehicles and renewable energy infrastructure that will support societies as they transform through this century. ArcelorMittal is listed on the stock exchanges of New York (MT), Amsterdam (MT), Paris (MT), Luxembourg (MT) and on the Spanish stock exchanges of Barcelona, Bilbao, Madrid and Valencia (MTS).
http://corporate.arcelormittal.com/
About the EIB
The European Investment Bank (EIB) is the long-term financing institution of the European Union (EU), and its shareholders are the 27 EU Member States. The EIB’s remit is to contribute towards the integration, balanced development and economic and social cohesion of the EU Member States. It borrows large volumes of funds on the capital markets and lends them on very favourable terms to support projects that contribute to attaining the European Union’s objectives.
The EIB is working to ensure the EU is on the cutting edge of the next wave of innovation. As the EU climate bank, it aims to encourage the emergence and deployment of new technologies to meet ongoing challenges such as the energy transition to a new green growth model and to help European innovators become world leaders in their areas of activity.
The EIB is one of the world's leading climate action lenders. Of the over €10 billion invested by the EIB in France in 2020 (France was the second-largest beneficiary of financing after Italy), 48% went to projects combating or mitigating climate change.
About the European Fund for Strategic Investments (EFSI)
The European Fund for Strategic Investments (EFSI) is the central pillar of the Investment Plan for Europe. It provides first-loss guarantees, enabling the EIB to invest in more and often riskier projects. The projects and agreements approved for financing under EFSI so far are expected to mobilise €546.5 billion of investment , a quarter of which is supporting research, development and innovation projects.
Press contacts:
ArcelorMittal: Sylvie Gindre [email protected] tel : +33 (0)3 87 70 40 63, mobile : +33 (0)6 19 34 80 76
EIB: Christophe Alix [email protected] tel.: +352 4379 84303, mobile: +33 6 11 81 30 99
Website: www.eib.org/press; Press Office: +352 4379 21000 – [email protected]
European Commission: Flora Matthaes, [email protected], tel.: +32 2 298 39 51