Saturday, June 28, 2025
Home News ArcelorMittal invests €65m in North Sea Port

ArcelorMittal invests €65m in North Sea Port

ArcelorMittal is opening a state-of-the-art new blast furnace in Ghent, representing an investment of 65 million euros. In doing so, the steel giant is further anchoring its position in North Sea Port.

The new blast furnace is for the Sidgal 3 hot-dip galvanising line, on which Fortiform, a high-tech steel product, is developed. This new steel variety is very attractive for car-makers because parts made from it are 10 to 20 percent lighter, more fuel-efficient and therefore better for the environment. “Thanks to the new technology, customers in the automotive sector will be able to limit emissions by passenger vehicles to 95 grams of CO2 per kilometre by 2020”, according to ArcelorMittal. In addition, the new type of steel is also safer in the event of a collision. In order to produce the steel, it must be exposed to a very specific temperature curve. This is not possible with the existing furnaces.

Steel of the future

ArcelorMittal’s Belgian operation is investing 250 million euros to manufacture ‘the steel of the future’. The factories in Ghent and Liège are pilot sites for the development of ‘Fortiform’, a new generation of advanced high-strength steels for cold deformation.

Dropping anchor in North Sea Port

ArcelorMittal Ghent and North Sea Port recently announced the construction of a covered loading dock in North Sea Port: the ‘All-Weather Terminal’, an investment worth more than 50 million euros. Late last year, ArcelorMittal started using a new 220-metre-long quay. Thanks to the new quay – an investment by the port authority and the steel plant with European support – the supply of scrap and the removal of slag from the blast furnaces of ArcelorMittal Ghent can take place by water. The quay can also be used by other companies.

ArcelorMittal already employs more than 5,000 people in Belgium, a number that increased by more than 150 last year thanks to a variety of research projects. It is too early to estimate how many additional jobs will eventually be generated by the new furnace, the company says.

 





Latest Posts

Suez slowdown reshapes Red Sea’s port map

The macro picture of the Red Sea is worsen as canal transits are at half-mast, and the region has relinquished its role as the...

We asked AI: When containers become pools

We asked AI what a container might look like if it was trasformed into a pool. The result? Long steel containers, many of them stacked,...

Transpacific crash may normalise charter market

Containership charter rates, which have defied the freight slump for some time, could be peaking, as some small ships chartered by opportunistic operators for...

Shipping alliances carriers and MSC control over 80% of market

As the container shipping industry continues its transformation, strategic cooperation among carriers remains a key force shaping global trade. According to updated Alphaliner data,...

Konecranes delivers crane package for BAE Systems’ in Scotland

Konecranes has completed a turnkey crane project for BAE Systems’ brand-new shipbuilding hall in Govan, Scotland. The installation, finished in June 2025, includes two electric...
error: Content is protected !!