India’s Jindal Group has acquired Czech flats producer Vítkovice Steel. The Ostrava-based company released the information to steel news outlets on October 7, stating that Jindal will acquire a 100% stake in the company from its current owners, subject to clearance from anti-monopoly authorities.
“Vítkovice Steel has been cooperating with Jindal Group for more than a year in the field of operational financing after Jindal Group stabilized its financial situation last year,” the firm said. It was not clear who Vítkovice’s current owners were, though information on the company’s website indicates lists ownership simply as “private investors.”
Plant officials were unavailable for comment, despite several attempts.
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Vítkovice is a Major Contributor to the EU Steel Industry
The current shareholders acquired the plant in 2014 from Russian metals and mining group Evraz, which initially acquired it in privatization in 2005. Information from the company’s website showed that Vítkovice can roll up to 755,000 metric tons per year of plate on one mill.
The factory’s product assortment includes plate in 5-200mm gauges and in 1,000-3,200mm widths for applications such as construction, shipbuilding and yellow goods, pressure vessels, military, pipeline and offshore structures.
Further downstream, the plant can produce sheet piles for harbors and canals, bridge piers, water management and flood protection in the form of retaining walls. It also has the ability to cut shapes.
Jindal to Power Czech Plant with 5 Million Tons of Eco-Friendly Slabs by 2026
Jindal will supply feed stock for rolling to the Czech plant. However, in August, the latter company announced that it signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Jindal for the supply of green slabs from Vulcan Green Steel in Oman.
The European steel industry should note that the plant is due to start operating in 2026 and will have an annual crude capacity of 5 million metric tons. It was not immediately clear where Vítkovice was currently sourcing slab for rolling.
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Steel News: Good Timing for Jindal’s Portfolio
High supply, low prices and competition from imports prompted Vítkovice to stop all steel making in 2015, leaving only rolling operations. The plant sourced pig iron from neighboring integrated steelmaker Ostrava, which Liberty acquired in 2019 from ArcelorMittal.
Vítkovice could pour up to 950,000 metric tons of crude steel in two, 75-ton basic oxygen converters, from which the company could produce the same volume of slab on one continuous caster in 145, 180 and 250mm gauges. Widths on the semi-finished product were 800-1,500mm.
The acquisition gives Jindal entrance into the European market, which the Indian group had sought for some time.
One analyst told MetalMiner that Jindal previously attempted to enter the European market in 2023 through the acquisition of Hungarian steelmaker and flats producer Dunaferr. However, the Liberty Group beat out the company for that asset. However, another analyst considered Jindal’s acquisition a better option, considering that the plate and sheet piling has more application in infrastructure projects.
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