ArcelorMittal Nippon Steel Industries
ArcelorMittal Nippon Steel India (AM/NS India) on Tuesday announced the appointment of Nobuo Okochi as its chief financial officer (CFO), effective July 1.
This follows the promotion of current CFO Amit Harlalka to the post of Chief Executive Officer (CEO). Last month, the joint venture between global steel majors ArcelorMittal and Nippon Steel had said Harlalka would take over as CEO from July 1. He succeeds Dilip Oommen, who will retire on June 30 after a two-decade association with the company since its Essar Steel days.
In a statement, AM/NS said the changes ensure continuity of leadership as the company pursues capacity expansion, value-added products and sustainability-led growth.
As CFO, Okochi will be responsible for overseeing AM/NS India’s finance, strategy, financial planning, capital allocation and governance functions, supporting the firm’s long-term growth ambitions and value creation priorities, the company said.
Okochi has over four decades of experience with Nippon Steel, where he currently serves as the Managing Executive Officer, India, ASEAN, Middle East and Africa. He played a key role in shaping foreign trade strategy and leading major cross-border projects in the steel major, holding senior leadership roles in finance, financial planning, capital budgeting and global business development. “Okochi has deep expertise in managing large-scale industrial investments and complex, multi-market operations,” AM/NS India said.
CEO Dilip Oommen said, “Okochi’s experience across geographies and large industrial organizations will bring significant depth to the management team as ArcelorMittal Nippon Steel India continues to build a resilient and future-ready enterprise.” He said Okochi’s appointment will strengthen the company’s leadership with valuable global perspective and deep experience in complex international markets.
Commenting on his appointment, Okochi said AM/NS India is well positioned with strong fundamentals and a clear strategic vision. “I will work closely with the entire team at ArcelorMittal Nippon Steel India to drive the company’s long-term growth, maintain strong financial governance and contribute to sustainable value creation,” he said.
In March, AM/NS India laid the foundation stone for a greenfield steel plant in Andhra Pradesh as part of its long-term objective of increasing its crude steelmaking capacity to 40 million tonnes per annum (MTPA). The capacity of Hazira plant in Gujarat is also being increased to 15 MTPA.
