Mitsubishi, Siemens start ‘complete global’ metals jv

Japan’s Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (MHI) and Germany’s Siemens have started their global metallurgy joint venture.

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Named Primetals Technologies, the partnership will be “a globally operating complete provider for plants, products and services for the iron, steel and aluminium industry”, both companies said in a joint statement on Wednesday January 7.

MHI holds a 51% stake in the company through Mitsubishi-Hitachi Metals Machinery – a group company with equity participation by Hitachi and IHI Corporation – with Siemens controlling the remaining 49%.

The joint venture was announced in May last year as a move to cope with the challenging market environment and high price pressure.

“MHI and Siemens have been sharing extremely favorable ‘chemistry’ in their corporate cultures, and each of them has different areas of strength in terms of both products and geographic regions,” MHI president and ceo Shunichi Miyanaga said in the statement.

“Therefore we stand to benefit significantly from synergy merits,” he added.

Siemens president and ceo Joe Kaeser said Primetals Technologies’ customers will now “rely on a powerful global player offering world-leading technologies”.

Primetals Technologies has a combined workforce of 9,000 employees from both companies.