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ArcelorMittal Commences Legal Action to Resolve Wabush Mines Situation

03/14/2008 - ArcelorMittal commences legal action to require U.S. Steel Canada and Cleveland-Cliffs to respect their original commitment to the sale of their interests in the Wabush Mines joint venture to ArcelorMittal Dofasco.

ArcelorMittal says it has commenced a legal action in the Ontario Superior Court to require U.S. Steel Canada Inc. and Cleveland-Cliffs Inc. to respect their original commitment to the sale of their respective interests in the Wabush Mines joint venture to ArcelorMittal Dofasco.
 
U.S. Steel Canada and Cleveland-Cliffs had agreed in August 2007 to sell their interests in the Wabush Mines joint venture to ArcelorMittal Dofasco in accordance with terms of an agreement signed by the three companies.
 
"Everyone fully understood the terms of this agreement,” said ArcelorMittal Dofasco President Juergen Schachler. “Our decision to pursue legal action is done in an effort to expedite the closure of the sale, and provide some much-needed certainty for the employees at Wabush as well as the community and government stakeholders.”
 
Cleveland-Cliffs and U.S. Steel Canada issued press releases last Tuesday, March 4, 2008, dismissing their binding legal obligations with respect to the sale. The announcements were a surprise to ArcelorMittal Dofasco.
 
ArcelorMittal is the world's largest and most global steel company, with 310,000 employees in more than 60 countries. The company leads a number of major global markets, including automotive, construction, household appliances and packaging, with leading R&D and technology, as well as sizeable captive supplies of raw materials and outstanding distribution networks. An industrial presence in 28 European, Asian, African and American countries exposes the company to all the key steel markets, from emerging to mature, positions it will be looking to develop in the high-growth Chinese and Indian markets.
 
ArcelorMittal’s key unaudited financials for 2007 show revenues of USD 105.2 billion, with a crude steel production of 116 million tonnes, representing around 10% of world steel output.