ThyssenKrupp AG's chief executive officer reaffirmed his commitment to the company's carbon steel operation in Mobile County.

Mr Heinrich Hiesinger, who became CEO of the Essen based steel giant in 2011, told shareholders at the company's annual meeting that despite growing pains at the company's new facilities in Brazil and Mobile, that business is important to the company's future.

He said that "The Americas market offers great prospects for our premium flat steel products. But the only way to leverage this potential is to successfully complete the commercial ramp up of our plants in Brazil and the USA and optimize our costs there."

The statement appears to be a rebuke to a report published in a German business magazine speculating that ThyssenKrupp was considering selling its carbon steel operations in Brazil and Alabama.

(Sourced from www.al.com)