wiredInUSA February 2019

Wire rod acquisition M A K I N G T H E NEWS

London-based GFG Alliance has announced that the addition of Keystone Consolidated Industries (KCI) to Liberty Steel USA creates one of the country’s largest producers of wire rod, and provides a platform for GFG to grow its US Greensteel capacity to five million tons per annum by 2020. The completion of the deal helps pave the way towards a proposed US IPO of Liberty Steel USA, which will be led by Credit Suisse. The transaction follows closely on the completion of Liberty Aluminium’s $500 million purchase of Aluminium Dunkerque, Europe’s largest aluminum smelter. KCI’s family of companies includes Keystone Steel and Wire, Engineered Wire Products, Strand Tech Manufacturing and Keystone Bar Products. The KCI range of products is

made from American-produced steel and consists of a diverse line of steel products, including steel billet, wire rod, reinforcement mesh, welded wire, agricultural wire fence, prestressed concrete strand, bar and coiled rebar used in the construction, agricultural, and automotive industries. KCI is said to have substantially improved its financial performanceover the last five years as it expanded significantly into value-added products, augmenting its original position as a supplier of low- carbon wire rod. The acquisition strengthens Liberty’s position in the US market with the addition of a highly productive wire rod facility with a 1.1 million ton capacity electric arc furnace (EAF), an MBQ/SBQ bar mill, three welded wire reinforcement mesh facilities and a PC strand facility.

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wiredInUSA - February 2019