IT’S A lot more than steely determination that has landed SA Express Lines with a plum contract.
The forwarding specialist has been appointed to handle all the air and sea imports for steel giant Ispat Iscor. Ispat International is acquiring LNM Holdings and the newly combined company is also acquiring the International Steel Group Inc (ISG), one of the largest integrated steel producers in North America and among the top ten globally.
These transactions dramatically change the landscape of the global steel industry with the newly combined company achieving annual total steel production capacity of 70 million tons. The company has operations in 14 countries on four continents and will employ 165 000 people.
“The steel giant’s decision to appoint Sael was largely based on our competitive position in the market and the fact that we handle a large volume of cargo for other steel majors. We therefore have the intellectual know-how to make things work,” Sael’s Benita Pretorius told FTW. Saldanha Steel, which is part of the Ispat Iscor Group, has been handled by Sael Cape Town for the past five years.
The majority of Iscor cargo is sourced from Germany, the North West Continent, Far East, South America and India, and includes raw materials, ferro alloys, spares, refractories and mill rolls.
“We’ve gained considerable expertise in the field over the past ten years and believe we have the infrastructure, the people skills and the track record to match.”
Sael is a privately owned forwarding and clearing company with seven offices nationally.
