- Business
- ArcelorMittal South Africa Ltd manufactures and sells a broad range of steel products in South Africa and internationally, operating through Steel Operations and Non-Steel Operations segments. The company produces flat steel products including hot-rolled coil, cold-rolled coil, colour-coated coil under the Chromadek brand, galvanised coil, electrogalvanised coil and plate; long steel products such as billets, coiled rounds, flats, reinforced bars, rounds, channels and sections; as well as non-steel products including commercial coke, chemicals, slag and tar by-products. It serves industries encompassing agriculture, automotive, construction, engineering, mining, packaging, piping, renewable energy, roofing and cladding, with primary sales in South Africa supplemented by exports to sub-Saharan Africa, Europe, Asia and the Americas.
Founded in 1928 as Iscor and headquartered in Vanderbijlpark, Gauteng, the company maintains major steelmaking facilities at Vanderbijlpark Works for flat products, Newcastle Works for long products and Vereeniging Works, while Saldanha Works remains under care and maintenance. As a subsidiary of ArcelorMittal Holdings AG and the largest steel producer in sub-Saharan Africa with a capacity of 7.8 million tonnes of liquid steel annually, it employs around 9,000 staff and contractors focused on innovative, export-driven steel industrialisation.
In recent developments, negotiations for the Industrial Development Corporation of South Africa (IDC) to acquire control of its operations via an 8.5 billion rand bid collapsed in late 2025 after failing to meet valuation expectations amid operational challenges, including threats to shutter Newcastle and Vereeniging plants critical to automotive and mining sectors. The IDC, already holding an 8% stake, had pursued strategic partnerships with entities like Networth Investments but could not finalise terms following a six-month due diligence period ending September 2025. The company continues pursuing low-carbon technologies introduced in 2022 while ramping up coke production to 1.9 million tonnes per annum over the next four years from 1.1 million tonnes in 2023.