ArcelorMittal signs JV for first metal cladding Co

New Delhi, Feb 7: Three leading companies today signed a joint venture agreement to set up the first metal cladding company in the country on an equal partnership basis.

The new project Innovative Clad Solutions is being promoted by ArcelorMittal Stainless and Nickel Alloys of France, Auerhammer Metallwerk Gmbh of Germany and country's Shivalik Bimetal Controls Ltd. Soon after signing of the agreement and formal exchange of documents, Shivalik's Chairman S S Sandhu told newspersons here today that the new company will be set up at the Special Economic Zone (SEZ), Indore at an estimated cost of Rs 45 crore. The plant will require an area of 225,000 square meters and process is on for acquiring the same. In the first phase, the plant will be producing 10,000 tonnes of the clad metal and this capacity will gradually be expanded, he added.

Responding to a question Mr Sandhu said the plant will be receiving the specialised steel as well as other alloys and total research and development (R&D) support from the ArcelorMittal of France.

The company will be opened to any other research institutions or company for having the R&D support and it will not be aversed to purchasing the raw materials from any other source. The new company will be working as an independent company, he added.

He said primarily the company will export about 65 per cent of its production, since the local demand is not much, but they will guide the end-users towards adopting this metal alloy as it would be helpful substantially in reducing the price of their end-product.

Responding to queries, Mr Sandhu said this metal cladding finds wide range of uses in automobile, marine, electronic, consumer goods and coinage sectors.

With the indigenous availability of this metal, it would revolutionalise the domestic industry in many ways, he added.

On this occasion, Mittal group's Executive Vice President Sudhir Maheshwari wished the new company a grand success.

Auerhammer CEO M G Rohr said it will help the Indian companies engaged in the activity of metals and related works to reduce their cost of production substantially once they start using the metal cladding solutions by way of new designs.

UNI