Usinas Siderúrgicas de Minas Gerais S.A

What it is

Usiminas is one of the largest producers of steel in the Americas, with total steelmaking capacity of 9.5 million metric tons per year. The company accounts for roughly 28% of total steel output in Brazil.

Founded in 1962, Usiminas runs five business units: iron ore mining (Mineração Usiminas), steel production at its Ipatinga and Cubatão plants, and related downstream services. Its steel goes to automakers, the oil and gas industry, construction, and heavy machinery.

The company was founded in 1958 as a joint venture backed by Japanese financing and technical cooperation, and lit its first blast furnace in October 1962. A metallurgy professor, Amaro Lanari Jr., negotiated the original agreement with the Japanese consortium and became Usiminas’ first president, serving until 1977.

Who owns it

In February 2026, Ternium’s subsidiary Ternium Investments completed the purchase of 153.1 million ordinary Usiminas shares from Nippon Steel and Mitsubishi for approximately US$315.2 million. The deal raised Ternium’s participation in the Usiminas control group from 51.5% to 83.1%.

The employees’ pension fund, Previdência Usiminas, controls 7.1% of the control group; together, Ternium’s Brazilian subsidiaries collectively hold 92.9% of the control group. Total share capital is divided into 1.25 billion shares, split 56.3% voting common shares and 43.7% preferred shares.

Insiders hold roughly 77% of capital and institutions a further 13%, leaving a free float of about 10% (our calculation from structured data).

Ternium itself is the steel arm of Argentina’s Techint Group, one of Latin America’s largest private industrial conglomerates. Under the shareholder agreement, Ternium nominates Usiminas’ CEO, while the board chair was nominated by Nippon Steel — an arrangement now effectively superseded by the buyout.

Who runs it

Marcelo Rodolfo Chara has served as Chief Executive Officer and member of the Executive Board since 2023. Before taking the top role at Usiminas, he was Executive President of Ternium Brasil from 2017 to 2023 and has held senior posts across Grupo Techint’s operations in Argentina, Venezuela, and Brazil.

Diego Eduardo Garcia serves as CFO and Investor Relations Officer, bringing 20 years of experience at Ternium, including as Senior Financial Director at Ternium Brazil. Garcia took the CFO role on 1 February 2026, following the resignation of his predecessor Thiago da Fonseca Rodrigues.

The money, in plain words

Usiminas sells about R$25–26bn (~US$4.9–5.1bn) of steel and iron ore a year, but has been losing money at the bottom line for two of the past three years. In FY2025 it lost R$3.1bn (~US$599m) — a net margin of roughly –10.3% on the trailing twelve months — after posting a small loss of R$146m (US$28 mn) in 2024 and a profit of R$1.4bn (US$272 mn) in 2023.

Revenue itself slipped about 4.6% from R$27.6bn (US$5.4 bn) in 2023 to R$26.4bn (US$5.1 bn) in 2025 (our calculation), as domestic steel prices weakened.

The company carries net debt of R$1.9bn (~US$374m) — total debt of R$7.1bn (US$1.4 bn) minus cash of R$5.1bn (US$992 mn) (our calculation) — modest relative to its R$20.8bn (US$4.0 bn) of shareholders’ equity. Return on equity is –9.3% on the trailing period (structured data), meaning owners are currently watching every real they put in shrink, not grow.

There is no dividend while losses persist, and no price-to-earnings ratio can be calculated on a loss.

What it is doing now

In full-year 2025, Usiminas grew its cash earnings before interest and tax by 24% year-on-year; steel unit costs fell 5% per ton; and iron ore sales hit a record 9.6 million tons, up 14% from 2024. Those operational gains were more than offset by large non-cash charges, producing the FY2025 net loss.

For 2026, CEO Marcelo Chara presented a capital expenditure plan of between R$1.4bn (US$272 mn) and R$1.6bn (~US$272–311m), focused on operational efficiency and competitiveness. New Brazilian anti-dumping tariffs on Chinese steel imports are expected to improve domestic pricing and support local sales.

What to watch

• Ternium’s full ownership thesis. Including related subsidiaries, the Techint Group now controls 92.9% of the Usiminas control group. Whether tighter management produces a return to profit — or triggers a delisting of minority shareholders — is the central question.
• The return to profitability. Two consecutive years of net losses and a negative return on equity of –9.3% demand a turnaround; the 2026 capex cycle and cost-cutting will test whether the improved cash earnings of 2025 can reach the bottom line.
• Chinese steel and tariffs. Brazil’s anti-dumping measures on imports have given Usiminas near-term pricing relief; any reversal would squeeze margins quickly in a commodity business.
• Mining as a buffer. Mineração Usiminas, the iron ore unit, is a genuine earnings diversifier; record volumes in 2025 show it can grow even when flat-rolled steel prices are soft.

This is news, not investment advice.