{{Short description|Former Belgian steel conglomerate}} {{Use dmy dates|date=June 2023}} {{Infobox company | name = Cockerill-Sambre | logo = | caption = | type = | fate = Bought by [[Usinor]], which later became part of [[Arcelor]] | predecessor = | successor = [[Usinor]] | foundation = 1981 | founder = | defunct = 1999 | location_city = | location_country = Belgium | location = | locations = | area_served = | key_people = | industry = [[Steel industry|Steel]] | products = | services = | revenue = | operating_income = | net_income = | aum = | assets = | equity = | owner = | num_employees = | parent = | divisions = | subsid = | homepage = | footnotes = | intl = }}
'''Cockerill-Sambre''' was a group of Belgian steel manufacturers headquartered in [[Seraing]], on the river [[Meuse]], and in [[Charleroi]], on the river [[Sambre]]. The Cockerill-Sambre group was formed in 1981 by the merger of two Belgian steel groups – SA Cockerill-Ougrée based at Seraing in the [[Liège Province|province of Liège]], and [[Hainaut-Sambre]] based at Charleroi in the [[Hainaut Province|province of Hainaut]] – both being the result of post-[[World War II]] consolidations of the Belgian steel industry.
The company inherited a steel industry with significant debts and production overcapacity based on blast furnace production rather than electric furnace recycling, with numerous factory sites in constrained city locations, and adversely affected by competition in the export market from new steel-producing countries (such as South Korea and Brasil). The need to streamline was complicated by regional dependence on employment in the steel industry.
It was merged into [[Usinor]] in 1999, and after 2002 was part of the [[Arcelor]] group. As of 2010, the bulk of the group is part of the [[ArcelorMittal]] multinational steel group, where it is known as ArcelorMittal Liège.
==History== {{see also|Hainaut-Sambre}}
===Cockerill=== [[File:Belgique - Bruxelles - Monument à John Cockerill - 02.jpg|thumb|<div style="text-align:center">Statue of [[John Cockerill (industrialist)|John Cockerill]] in [[Brussels]]</div>]] The Cockerill group's name came from the English-born Belgian industrialist [[John Cockerill (industrialist)|John Cockerill]], who founded [[John Cockerill & Cie.]] in 1817. During the first few decades of its existence, the firm rose to become a major integrated steel company, not only producing iron in blast furnaces, but also producing machines and other articles from the metal. After John Cockerill's death in 1840, the company became the state-owned [[Société anonyme John Cockerill]], and an international-scale producer of iron and steel metal and products.
The 8 day [[Strike of the 100,000]] originated at Cockerill on 10 May 1941, and eventually spread across the entirety of [[Liege province]]. The strike was both a way of seeking higher wages, and passively resisting the [[German occupation of Belgium during World War II]]. The strike was settled following an 8% wage increase, and future wartime strikes were often repressed by force.<ref>{{cite book |title=Dictionnaire de la Seconde Guerre Mondiale en Belgique |date=2008 |isbn=978-2-87495-001-8 |last1=Aron |first1=Paul |last2=Gotovitch |first2=José |publisher=André Versaille }}</ref>
In 1955 the company merged with [[Ougrée-Marihaye]] and ''Ferblatil''<ref group="note">Ferblatil: ''Laminoirs à Froid de Fer-blanc à Tilleur'', Cold rolling and tinplate production</ref>{{sfn|Mommen|1994|p=91}} to form '''Cockerill-Ougrée'''. The new company had a total steel production of over 2 million tonnes, and it employed over 45,000 people in 1957.<ref name="fig">{{harvnb|Fusulier|Vandewattyne|Lomba|2003|p=61}}</ref>
In 1961 ''Tolmatil'' became part of Cockerill-Ougrée,<ref name="p693">{{harvnb|Mény|Wright|1987|p=693}}</ref><ref group="note">Tolmatil: based in [[Tilleur]], production of grain orientated magnetic steels for electrical applications. Source: Paul Mingret, ''Quelques problèmes de l'Europe à travers l'exemple de Liège et de sa région'', p. 8</ref> in 1962 it participated in the founding of [[Sidmar]] contributing 1bn [[Belgian franc]]s of the companies 4.5bn capital.<ref name="p693"/> Further consolidation of companies occurred in 1966 when it merged with ''[[Les Forges de la Providence]]'', a Belgian steelmaker with plants in northern France with three steel plants; in [[Réhon]]<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.industrie.lu/usineprovidencerehon.html|language=French|work=industrie.lu|title=La Providence – Réhon (France)}}</ref> and [[Hautmont]], (France) and in [[Marchienne-au-Pont]], (Belgium) adding over 35,000 persons to the company. The new company was named '''Cockerill-Ougrée-Providence''', and had a production capacity of 5 million tonnes of steel.<ref name="fig"/>
In 1969 the [[Phenix Works]] ([[Flémalle-Haute]]) became part of the [[Cockerill-Ougrée-Providence]] group (fully absorbed 1989).<ref name="arc"/>{{sfn|Mény|Wright|1987|p=694}}<ref name="fl2">{{citation| url = http://www.mmil.ulg.ac.be/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/003-printemps-2015-BAT.pdf| title = Paul Borgnet et la société Phénix Works| page=2| journal = Le bulletin de la MMIL| date = 2015| number =3 | language = french }}</ref>
In 1970 the company merged with the Liège-based ''[[Société Métallurgique d'Espérance Longdoz]]'', forming '''Cockerill-Ougrée-Providence et Espérance Longdoz''';<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.industrie.lu/SocieteMetallurgiqueEsperanceLongdoz.html|title=Société Métallurgique d'Espérance Longdoz , Seraing / Liége|work=industrie.lu|language=French}}</ref> the new group was the fifth largest steelmaker in the [[European Economic Community|EEC]], with a steel production capacity of 7million tonnes; the new group contained all the steel producing companies in the Liège basin.<ref name="fig"/>
In 1975 the company sold its 25% stake in [[Sidmar]] to [[Arbed]].{{sfn|Mény|Wright|1987|p=695}} In 1979 the ''[[Forges de la Providence]]'' company was sold to ''[[Thy-Marcinelle et Monceau]]'' (TMM), disposing of the group's interests outside the Liège area;{{sfn|Mény|Wright|1987|p=698}} the resulting Liège-based group being known simply as '''Cockerill'''.
The company then merged with the [[Charleroi]]-based steel group [[Hainaut-Sambre]] in 1981 to form '''Cockerill-Sambre'''.<ref name="fun">{{cite web|url=https://www.fundinguniverse.com/company-histories/Cockerill-Sambre-Group-Company-History.html|title=Cockerill Sambre Group -- Company History|work=fundinguniverse.com}}</ref><ref name="arc">{{cite web|url=http://www.cockerill-sambre.com/fr/historique/historique.htm|title=ArcelorMittal Liège : Historique|language=French|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304002631/http://www.cockerill-sambre.com/fr/historique/historique.htm|archive-date=4 March 2016}}</ref>
===Cockerill-Sambre=== The merger to form Cockerill-Sambre was announced on 16 January 1981,{{sfn|Fusulier|Vandewattyne|Lomba|2003|p=83}} and the company came into being on 26 June 1981.{{sfn|Mény|Wright|1987|p=717}} The company inherited a debt equivalent to 1363million Eur from Cockerill and a similar amount from Hainaut-Sambre.{{sfn|Fusulier|Vandewattyne|Lomba|2003|loc=p.97 note.65 (to p. 83)}} A rescue plan was drawn up by consultant Jean Gandois in 1983,{{sfn|Mény|Wright|1987|p=726}} the aim was to return the company by 1985, which was a prerequisite for sanction by the European Commission of a government-backed investment plan (the second Claes plan).{{sfn|Mény|Wright|1987|p=722}} One consequence of the restructuring was that, of 22,000 workers (1983), nearly 8,000 would no longer be required by 1986, in addition to production cuts and closures.{{sfn|Mény|Wright|1987|p=728}}
[[EKO Stahl]] ([[Eisenhüttenstadt]]) was acquired in 1994.<ref name="arc"/>
In 1999 the group became part of the French steel group [[Usinor]]; in 2002 there was another merger, this time with [[Arbed]] and [[Aceralia]] of Luxembourg and Spain, to form the continental western European steel giant [[Arcelor]].
==See also== *[[European Coal and Steel Community]]
==Notes== <references group="note"/>
==References== {{Reflist}}
===Sources=== *{{Cite journal|url=http://popups.ulg.ac.be/federalisme/document.php?id=298|title=Caractéristiques des bassins industriels dans l'Eurégio Meuse-Rhin|author=Suzanne Pasleau|journal=Fédéralisme Régionalisme|volume=3|year=2002–2003|language=French|access-date=3 September 2010|archive-date=6 July 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110706132958/http://popups.ulg.ac.be/federalisme/document.php?id=298|url-status=dead}} *{{Cite book|title=The Politics of steel: Western Europe and the steel industry in the crisis years (1974-1984)|editor-first =Yves|editor-last= Mény|editor-first2= Vincent|editor-last2= Wright| publisher=Walter de Gruyter |year=1987 }} *{{cite journal|title=Quelques problèmes de l'Europe à travers l'exemple de Liège et de sa région|first =Paul | last = Mingret|journal=Revue de Géographie de Lyon|year=1962|volume=37|issue=37–1|pages=5–74|language=French|doi=10.3406/geoca.1962.1734}} *{{cite book|title=Kaléidoscope d'une modernisation industrielle. Usinor-Cockrill Sambre-Arcelor|first1 =Bernard |last1 =Fusulier|first2= Jean | last2 = Vandewattyne| first3 =Cédric |last3 = Lomba|publisher=Presses univ. de Louvain|year=2003|language=French|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=otvgcVEBOmMC|isbn =9782930344126 }} *{{cite book|title=The Belgian economy in the twentieth century| first=André |last= Mommen|publisher=Routledge|year=1994|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=vIQOAAAAQAAJ| isbn=9780415019361 }}
==External links== {{commons category|Cockerill-Sambre}} *[http://www.cockerill-sambre.com ArcelorMittal Liège company website] – ''current entity'' *{{citation| url =http://www.hfinster.de/StahlArt2/archive-CockerillLiege-en.html |title = Cockerill Sambre Liège / Seraing|author =Harold Hfinster|work = hfinster.de}} * {{PM20|FID=co/019417|TEXT=Documents and clippings about|NAME=}}
[[Category:Cockerill Company (Belgium)|.]] [[Category:Steel companies of Belgium]] [[Category:ArcelorMittal]] [[Category:History of Charleroi]] [[Category:History of Liège]] [[Category:Seraing]] [[Category:Manufacturing companies established in 1981]] [[Category:Manufacturing companies disestablished in 1999]] [[Category:1981 establishments in Belgium]] [[Category:1999 disestablishments in Belgium]] [[Category:Defunct manufacturing companies of Belgium]] [[Category:Companies based in Liège Province]]