Following its European report for the second quarter of 2015, ArcelorMittal steel and mining company with headquarters in Luxembourg today also revealed its half year 2015 results, including key development projects and expected outcomes for the next quarter.

ArcelorMittal reported Earnings Before Interest, Taxes, Depreciation and Amortisation (EBITDA) of $1.4 billion for the second quarter, a figure which it stated had remained stable with regards to the first quarter of 2015. Net income stood at $0.2 billion in 2015's second quarter, as compared to a new loss of $0.7 billion in the previous quarter.

In terms of materials, steel shipments were found to have increased in 2Q 2015 by 3.4% to 22.2 million tonnes (Mt) in comparison with the same quarter of 2014, and a comparison for the same time frame for own iron ore production showed a 0.2 Mt decrease but an 2.7% increase in iron ore shipping and reporting at market prices to 10.8 Mt. Iron ore cash costs reduced by 14% Year over Year (YoY).

The company also reported a net debt, as of 30 June 2015, of $16.6 billion, which it claimed was stable as compared to 31 March 2015 and was mainly due to positive free cash flow of $0.5 billion offset by negative forex ($0.2 billion) and dividends ($0.3 billion) and represented a YoY net debt decrease of $0.9 billion.

ArcelorMittal spoke of several development projects that had been key for the company in the last three months. Among these were a record health and safety LTIF performance; a record of 7 million tonnes of iron ore shipped from flagship AMMC operations in Canada during 2Q 2015; a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) signed for a joint venture with Sail for India automotive steel; an approved investment designed to increase capacity for hot rolled coil (HRC) and hot dip galavanised (HDG) in Krakow, Poland; and a signed intention to create Europe's first-ever commercial scale bioethanol production facility in Ghent, Belgium.

ArcelorMittal's outlook for the rest of the year remained unchanged, with a continual expectation of a 2015 EBITDA within the range of $6.0-$7.0 billion, capital expenditures of approximately $3.0 billion and 2015 net interest expense of approximately $1.4 billion. The company also stated it still expects positive free cash flow in 2015 and progress achievement in the medium net debt target of $15 billion.

"Despite continued pressure on both steel and iron-ore prices, we have delivered a consistent set of operating results compared with the first quarter," stated ArcelorMittal Chairman and CEO, Lakshimi N. Mittal. "Europe continues to be a bright spot, with EBITDA again improving by 10.5% compared with the first quarter of 2015. Mining has also performed robustly against the backdrop of a lower iron-ore price, with ArcelorMittal Mines Canada reporting record shipment levels and improved costs. We remain concerned by the high level of imports. Whilst we are somewhat encouraged by recent actions on potential trade defence measures from both the US and Europe, we are also taking action to adapt our own business. More positively, even against such a challenging backdrop, we have delivered a small net income for the second quarter, reduced net debt year on year and we still expect to be cash flow positive for the year."

 


Table by ArcelorMittal