Cleveland-Cliffs Inc. (NYSE: CLF) announced that it has entered into a definitive agreement with ArcelorMittal S.A. (NYSE: MT), pursuant to which Cleveland-Cliffs will acquire substantially all of the operations of ArcelorMittal USA LLC and its subsidiaries for approximately $1.4 billion. Upon closure of the transaction, Cleveland-Cliffs will be the largest flat-rolled steel producer in North America, with combined shipments of approximately 17 million net tons in 2019. The company will also be the largest iron ore pellet producer in North America, with 28 million long tons of annual capacity.
ArcelorMittal USA will be acquired by Cleveland-Cliffs on a cash-free and debt-free basis, with a combination of 78.2 million shares of Cleveland-Cliffs common stock, non-voting preferred stock with an approximate aggregate value of $373 million, and $505 million in cash. The enterprise value of the transaction is approximately $3.3 billion, which takes into consideration the assumption by Cleveland-Cliffs of pension/OPEB liabilities and working capital.
In 2018 and 2019, ArcelorMittal USA averaged annual revenues of approximately $10.4 billion and annual adjusted EBITDA of approximately $700 million. The assets acquired include 6 steelmaking facilities, 8 finishing facilities, 2 iron ore mining and pelletizing operations, and 3 coal and cokemaking operations.
The transaction is anticipated to be EPS accretive, and Cleveland-Cliffs expects the acquisition to reduce the Company’s leverage from 4.3x to 3.6x on a pro-forma 2019 adjusted EBITDA basis, including the expectation of approximately $150 million in estimated annual cost savings. The acquisition is also expected to increase the Company’s liquidity substantially due to an increased ABL borrowing base.
Lourenco Goncalves, Chairman of the Board, President and CEO of Cleveland-Cliffs, will lead the expanded organization. Mr. Goncalves stated: “Steelmaking is a business where production volume, operational diversification, dilution of fixed costs, and technical expertise matter above all else, and this transaction achieves all of these. ArcelorMittal is a world class organization that we have long admired as our customer and our partner, and we know for a fact that they have taken good care of their US assets.”
Mr. Goncalves continued, “We look forward to welcoming the ArcelorMittal USA team into our organization. We are creating an exceptional company, based on great people and supported by our existing strong relationship with the United Steelworkers, the United Auto Workers and the Machinists unions. The acquisition of ArcelorMittal USA amplifies our position in the discerning automotive steel marketplace, and further improves our position in important U.S. markets such as construction, appliances, infrastructure, machinery and equipment. It also adds to our strong legacy raw material profile and growing finishing capabilities. The transaction will enable us to become a more efficient fully-integrated steel system, with the ability to realize all of our operational and financial goals.”
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