LAKSHMI MITTAL
DOB: Jun 15, 1950
Birthplace: Rajasthan, India
Ethnicity: Indian
Occupation: CEO Arcelor Mittal Steel
Residence: United Kingdom
Dina’s Thoughts
Mr. Mittal has created the world’s largest steel company which produces the steel used for one in every five cars in existence. He has inspired countless Indians from humble backgrounds to achieve great successes and has also set up the Mittal Champions Trust which provides support for Indian athletes competing on a world stage.
Overview
Lakshmi N Mittal, 60, is the Chairman and CEO of ArcelorMittal. Mr Mittal founded Mittal Steel Company (formerly the LNM Group) in 1976 and guided its strategic development, culminating in the merger with Arcelor, agreed in 2006, to found the world’s largest steelmaker. Since the merger, Mr Mittal has led a successful integration, establishing ArcelorMittal as one of the world’s foremost industrial companies. He is widely recognized for the leading role he has played in restructuring the steel industry towards a more consolidated and globalised model.
Mr Mittal is an active philanthropist and a member of various boards and trusts, including the boards of Goldman Sachs and EADS. He is also a member of the Indian Prime Minister’s Global Advisory Council, the Foreign Investment Council in Kazakhstan, the World Economic Forum’s International Business Council, the World Steel Association’s Executive Committee and the Presidential International Advisory Board of Mozambique. He also sits on the Advisory Board of the Kellogg School of Management in the United States and is a member of the Board of Trustees of Cleveland Clinic.
Mr Mittal began his career working in the family’s steelmaking business in India, and has over 35 years of experience working in steel and related industries. In addition to forcing the pace of industry consolidation, he has also championed the development of integrated mini-mills and the use of DRI as a scrap substitute for steelmaking. Following the transaction combining Ispat International and LNM Holdings to form Mittal Steel in December 2004, together with the simultaneous announcement of the acquisition of International Steel Group in the United States, he led the formation of the world’s then-leading steel producer. Subsequently, in 2006, under his leadership Mittal Steel merged with Arcelor to form ArcelorMittal.
In 1996, Mr Mittal was awarded ‘Steelmaker of the Year’ by New Steel in the United States and the ‘Willy Korf Steel Vision Award’ by World Steel Dynamics in 1998 for outstanding vision, entrepreneurship, leadership and success in global steel development. He was named Fortune magazine’s ‘European Businessman of the Year 2004’. Mr. Mittal was awarded ‘Business Person of 2006’ by the Sunday Times, ‘International Newsmaker of the Year 2006’ by Time Magazine and ‘Person of the Year 2006’ by the Financial Times for his outstanding business achievements. In January 2007, Mr Mittal was presented with a Fellowship from King’s College London, the college’s highest award. He also received the 2007 Dwight D Eisenhower Global Leadership Award, the Grand Cross of Civil Merit from Spain and was named AIST Steelmaker of the year.
In January 2008, Mr Mittal was awarded the Padma Vibhushan, India’s second highest civilian honor, by the President of India. In September 2008, Mr Mittal was chosen for the third ‘Forbes Lifetime Achievement Award’, which honors heroes of entrepreneurial capitalism and free enterprise. In October 2010 he was awarded World Steel Association’s medal in recognition of his services to the Association as its Chairman and also for his contribution to the sustainable development of the global steel industry.
Mr Mittal was born in Sadulpur in Rajasthan, India on June 15, 1950. He graduated from St Xavier’s College in Kolkata where he received a Bachelor of Commerce degree. Mr Mittal is married to Usha Mittal, and has a son, Aditya Mittal and a daughter, Vanisha Mittal Bhatia.