On April 22, the world's largest steelmaker ArcelorMittal announced that in defense of its patent rights it filed complaints before the District Court of Delaware, US on April 16 to demonstrate that AK Steel, Severstal North America (SNA) and SNA's coating partner, Wheeling-Nisshin, have infringed upon its Usibor aluminum silicon coated products patent (Usibor-AS) by selling steel grades protected under the Usibor-AS patent to automakers and their supply chains.
The decision follows the United States Patent and Trademark Office's reissuance of patent RE44,153 on April 16, 2013, covering the domestic production of Usibor-AS as a hot rolled or cold rolled steel with an ultimate tensile strength of 1,000 megapascals (MPa) or higher after hot forming. The patent does not expire until July 9, 2019.
According to the company statement, if the court rules in ArcelorMittal's favor, AK Steel and SNA will be held liable for damages in the case, and the company will seek an entry of injunction, prohibiting AK Steel and SNA from further sale of infringing steel. Infringement of the abovementioned products patent by other steelmakers places the entire supply chain at significant risk of financial and reputational consequences, according to ArcelorMittal.