Wire and Tube 2024

• ArcelorMittal Europe increases range of XCarb® recycled and renewably produced steel, made with a high percentage of steel scrap and 100% renewable electricity.
• New generation of Free Cutting Steel boasts equivalent mechanical properties to the standard leaded grade and offers significant CO2 emissions benefits, requiring less energy for machining
• Investment at ArcelorMittal Dortmund in a new ultrasound control line revolutionizes ability to provide defect-free products tailored to customer needs

Low carbon-emissions steel on the way: XCarb® recycled and renewably produced steel, made with a high percentage of steel scrap and 100 % renewable electricity, is already today available for a wide range of steel products. At the Wire and Tube trade fair from 15-19 April 2024 in Düsseldorf, ArcelorMittal showcases its latest innovations for bars, rods and wire solutions (hall 12, booth D32) as well as tubular products (hall 3, booth B58).

Tapas Rajderkar, Chief Marketing Officer at ArcelorMittal Europe – Long Products, comments: “Low carbon-emissions steel is here today, whether it be steel products for the energy transition, the construction industry or the automotive sector: Our CO2 reduced products are available in the market and we see continually increasing interest on the customer side.”

This development fits in well with the Group's target to become carbon neutral by 2050 worldwide and -35 % by 2030 in Europe.

ArcelorMittal offers already today XCarb® recycled and renewably produced solutions for parts requiring SBQ components, contributing to the decarbonisation effort in the automotive industry.

Also, the XCarb® family is growing and XCarb® recycled and renewably produced tyre cord will be available from ArcelorMittal within short from our mill in Gijon based on an EAF production route. The pre-homologation process is already starting this year.

The demand for XCarb® recycled and renewably produced steel is also increasing in the construction industry and energy sector: More than 80 % of the components in a wind turbine and its related infrastructure are made with steel. ArcelorMittal’s steels have been successfully used in the manufacture of more than 10,000 onshore and offshore wind turbine towers since 2005. ArcelorMittal produces an extensive portfolio of steels which are used in the major components of a wind farm: foundations, tower, nacelle, generator, gearbox, yaw, pitch, mooring ropes, and power cables.

Bars and rods also play a major role there. Rebars (concrete reinforcement bar) are used for onshore and concrete offshore foundations. The business division WireSolutions produces several solutions for the wind industry, such as mooring ropes: sheathed spiral strand wire, sockets and offshore transportation reels. Also high performance hoisting ropes for the most demanding environment and XCarb® recycled and renewably produced galvanised low carbon steel wire for cable armouring.

Steel is used as a reinforcement element in concrete or cables for the construction industry. These product families are mainly wire rod mesh, rebars in bars or rebars in coils and high Carbon Prestressed Steels (PSC). Regulations are more demanding in the Nordics, but all countries follow the same trends. The more demanding customers are governmental ones. At the time of enquiry for new buildings and infrastructures, the requirements are now including thresholds regarding carbon footprint. New projects are approved when the CO2 footprint meets the requirements.

Moreover, WireSolutions, the drawing wire division of ArcelorMittal, presents an extensive lineup of products featuring low carbon emissions steel, catering to various needs including windows fasteners, wire ropes, wiper arms, cable armouring wire, cold heading quality materials, steel fibres, bright bars, fencing and nails.

One of the most recent notable innovations is the introduction of a new generation of Free Cutting Steel, named 3eCut®, which boasts equivalent mechanical properties to the standard leaded grade 11SMnPb30. This advancement offers significant CO2 emissions benefits, requiring less energy for machining. Moreover, it brings about economic advantages by extending the lifespan of cutting tools, resulting in substantial cost savings, and reducing the lifespan energy consumption by 30%. Enhanced machinability leads to improved productivity, as it allows for higher cutting speeds and controlled chip formation, resulting in smaller chips.