Representatives of 45 steel companies from the Arab region attended the meeting. The meeting was hosted by the National Industrial and Mining Company (SNIM), one of Mauritania's leading iron ore producers.
In his opening speech, the Director General of SNIM expressed his pleasure for hosting this important meeting and hoped that the meetings would contribute to the development of the sector.
Following the elections to the Board of Directors, Hadid from Saudi Arabia, National Steel Company (SNS) from Algeria, Amsteel from the United Arab Emirates and Qatar Steel from Qatar were elected as Vice Chairmen of the Board. Dr. Kamel Djoudi will serve as Secretary General of the Union until 2029.
Speaking after the elections, Eng. Ahmed Ezz stated that the rise of protectionist policies in the global steel sector and overcapacity problems have led to unfair competition in Arab markets, and emphasized that Arab countries should act jointly against these challenges. Ezz noted that the Arab Iron and Steel Union is a platform of strategic importance.
Economic and technical committee reports were also presented during the meetings. George Matta, Head of Marketing at Ezz Steel, gave a presentation on global economic developments affecting the Arab steel industry, while Saudi Arabian official Dr. Othman Al-Malki shared the technical transformation processes to reduce carbon emissions in the industry.
The General Assembly welcomed El-Marakby Steel (Egypt) as a new member. The meetings ended with expressions of gratitude to SNIM for the hosting and organization.
The Arab Iron and Steel Union was established in 1972 as the first Arab industrial association focused on the steel sector and is affiliated to the Arab League. Its permanent headquarters or General Secretariat is located in Algeria, with a regional office in Cairo, and has over 75 member companies.
According to the latest Worldsteel data, Ezz Steel was the largest Arab steel company in 2023 with crude steel production of 6.2 million tons, followed by Hadeed of Saudi Arabia with 5.5 million tons. Ezz Steel is ranked 60th among the world's top steel producing companies. The Arab region produced around 42 million tons of crude steel in 2024, mainly through the direct reduced iron (DRI) and electric arc furnace (EAF) route. This production structure gives the region's steel industry the advantage of producing steel with lower carbon emissions compared to the basic oxygen furnace (BOF). This advantage stands out as an important factor that increases competitiveness, especially in export markets where carbon footprint criteria are important.
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