London: Indian-born Lakshmi Mittal (pictured) has signed an $850.5m agreement that will see the world's biggest steelmaker ArcelorMittal, acquire an iron-ore mine and develop a port in Brazil, reports Bloomberg.
ArcelorMittal, which stated that it will pay London Mining Plc about $810m for the mine, may invest up to $700m to raise output to more than 10m tons per year from its current production of approximately 3m tonnes. The company added that it will also take an 80% stake in a port in Rio de Janeiro for $40.5m and will develop the facility with Canada's Adriana Resources Inc.
The development of the port in Sepetiba Bay to handle the increased export volumes is expected to cost about $250m. Construction is slated to start in the final quarter of 2008 and is expected to take between 18 months and two years to complete, with further expansion on the cards in the following five years.
The move would not only help expand ArcelorMittal's raw-material supplies at a time when prices of iron ore and coal are extremely high, but the port link would also help the company increase its self sufficiency. [22/08/08]
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