In Taranto, ArcelorMittal Italia will produce 5 million mt of steel this year, said CEO Matthieu Jehl during a speech at Made in Steel, the conference & exhibition event held in Milan from 14 to 16 May. However, according to Jehl, the temporary halt to ArcelorMittal's plan to increase the production of the former Ilva may represent an opportunity: "Despite all the progress made in Taranto - he explained - we still have to work on the level of quality and service we offer our customers, because it is still not satisfactory for ArcelorMittal both in Taranto and in Genoa and Novi Ligure. If there is no opportunity to increase volumes in ArcelorMittal's Italian activities, there is the opportunity to offer the right quality and service".
Jehl also wanted to point out that there is no change in ArcelorMittal's long-term strategy for its Italian activities, which includes over € 1 billion of environmental investments in Taranto. "After six months [since the Ilva takeover] we can already talk about a change of direction on health and environmental safety, which are the heart of our project for Taranto and ArcelorMittal Italia", said Jehl. "The most visible part of what has been done so far - he added - is the covering of raw material yards. Speaking of production, most of the plants have resumed their activities after we took over the company".