By DPA
Johannesburg : The South African government plans to take on the local subsidiary of steel giant Arcelor Mittal of London-based Indian steel magnate Lakshmi Mittal by building its own carbon steel plant, Business Day newspaper reported here Wednesday.
A feasibility study into the costs and location of such a plant was being carried out under the auspices of South Africa’s recently unveiled industrial policy, according to the paper.
The move would involve South Africa competing with a former state-owned company.
South African iron and steel producer ISCOR was bought over by Mittal in 1989 and subsequently named Arcelor Mittal South Africa. Mittal Steel merged with Belgium’s Arcelor in 2006 to become Arcelor Mittal, the world’s largest steel producer.
Arcelor Mittal South Africa, which enjoys a monopoly position in the market, was rapped over the knuckles earlier this year by the Competition Tribunal for “excessive prices” for its flat steel products in South Africa.
Trade and Industry Minister Mandisi Mpahlwa has complained about “monopoly pricing” in some industry sectors.
Mittal says a series of price hikes on a number of products are due to higher input costs.