Jan. 5, 2006 — As its new Cleveland galvanizing line nears completion, Mittal Steel USA is already exploring its options for continuing to meet future automotive customer requirements.

To facilitate service to a wider spectrum of automotive applications, the company is now making plans to add galvannealing capability to the line. The company has formed a team to perform the engineering, evaluate technologies and seek bids to enhance the line to produce galvannealed.

The coating line will be rated at 500,000 tons a year, any portion of which could be produced as galvanized or galvannealed.

The company says it could start offering galvannealed steel from the line as early as the first quarter of 2007.

Mittal Steel Co. NV is the world's largest and most global steel company, with operations in 16 countries, on four continents. Mittal Steel encompasses all aspects of modern steelmaking, to produce a comprehensive portfolio of both flat and long steel products to meet a wide range of customer needs. It serves all the major steel consuming sectors, including automotive, appliance, machinery and construction. For 2004, Mittal Steel had revenues of U.S. $22.2 billion and steel shipments of 42.1 million tons.

Formed in April 2005 by the merger of Ispat Inland Inc. and International Steel Group, Mittal Steel USA has operations in 12 states.