manufacturing capacity was below 76 per
cent with up to two million tons of high-end
automotive steel imported annually. VAMA
positioned itself to supply this need,
increasing steel production, without
generating pollution.”
“Car makers have a strong demand for
high-strength steel to adapt to the demand
for lightweight development. The demand
in China last year was 20 million tons and
there is an annual growth potential of up
to 1.5 million tons.”
Describing himself as “just a Brazilian
guy”, Fernando Teixeira joined CSN, one
of Brazil’s leading steelmakers in 1987, after
graduating as a mechanical engineer. In 2001,
he joined ArcelorMittal as head of pickling
and tandem cold mill area at a new project
called Vega.
In 2012, he was appointed CEO and led
ArcelorMittal to benchmarks in cost, quality
and operational performance. Three years
later, he became CEO of VAMA, just a year
after its automotive steel plant opened.
The VAMA plant, an investment in
excess of US$800 million and involving more
than 2,000 workers, took just two years to
complete, compared with an industry average
of 3.5 years. It also achieved more than six
million safe work hours and earned the
reputation for being one of the safest steel
projects in China.
VAMA was launched to supply
international car makers and Tier-1 suppliers.
This includes ArcelorMittal’s major customers
in China, such as Volkswagen, GM, Ford,
PSA, Daimler-Benz, BMW, Toyota, Honda,
Renault, Fiat, Nissan, and domestic
manufacturers Geely, Chery, Shanghai Auto,
Dongfeng, Guangzhou Auto, and Changan.
“Locally produced high-quality hot rolled
coil is further processed and transformed into
state-of-the-art automotive steel in VAMA’s
plant,” Fernando explains. “This local service
has the advantage of a shorter response time,
shorter lead time, lower cost and, of course,
local convenience. Since VAMA launched,
we have been replacing a significant amountHalf page advert
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