India’s ArcelorMittal Nippon Steel Limited (AMNS), a joint venture between ArcelorMittal and Nippon Steel, has launched colour coated steel with innovative zinc-aluminium-magnesium coating under the brand name of ‘Optigal’, a company statement said on Friday, August 23.
The high-end product under ArcelorMittal Europe’s patented brand name is now being currently made available in India and being produced by AMNS for the first time in the country.
The new offering reinforces the company’s pioneering efforts to introduce internationally benchmarked quality products to meet the growing need for indigenous superior quality coated steel, AMNS said in the statement.
It estimates the annual demand for colour coated products in India currently at 3.2 million mt and projected to grow at 8-10 percent, it said.
The production of Optigal has commenced at AMNS’s plant at Pune in Maharashtra, marking the first phase of a broader production strategy that will extend to other facilities in the near future, it added.
AMNS currently has a colour coated steelmaking capacity of about 700,000 mt, with plans to ramp up the capacity to 1 million mt by 2026. With this capacity expansion, the company’s market share is projected to grow from the current 20-22 percent to 25-27 percent, according to the company.
The production process for the new product uses a unique ZAM alloy technology that involves hot dip coating of steel strip in a bath of zinc, aluminium, and magnesium alloy. The inclusion of magnesium enhances both performance and durability, the company said.
The ideal combination of substrate and paint ensures high formability and improved corrosion protection for construction products. Optigal is an eco-friendly product, free of hexavalent chromium and heavy metals, designed to reduce environmental impact and promote safety and sustainability, the company statement said.