Takahiro Mori, executive vice president of Japanese steelmaker Nippon Steel Corporation, has stated during an interview with Reuters that Nippon Steel, the world’s fourth largest steelmaker, will continue looking for opportunities in global coking coal and iron ore assets to secure raw material supply and mitigate the potential impact of price volatility.
As SteelOrbis reported previously, the company will acquire additional equity in Elk Valley Resources, the metallurgical coal business of Canada-based Teck Resources.
“Coking coal prices are expected to rise as supply will get tighter in the medium term as there has been little investment in mines due to the carbon-neutral push. So, it is extremely important to secure our own interests. We would like to raise the self-sufficiency ratio to around 40 percent in order to neutralize the impact of raw material prices on market products,” Mori stated.
Nippon Steel already owns stakes in several coking coal mines, which account for about one fifth of its annual coal imports totaling 25 million mt. The latest deal with Teck Resources will increase that share to around 30 percent. It also procures 20 percent of its 50 million mt of iron ore imports from its equity holdings.