Gerdau celebrates 123 years with the commitment to shape an even more sustainable future

Brazil’s largest steel producer starts a new cycle focused on creating value for its stakeholders

Today (January 16), Gerdau celebrates 123 years of an entrepreneurial history whose mission is to shape the future. Established as a nail factory in Porto Alegre (RS), Gerdau has become Brazil’s largest steel producer, one of the leading suppliers of long steel in the Americas and of special steel in the world. It is present in various countries across the Americas and has over 36,000 employees worldwide.

During this journey, Gerdau remained connected to the history of Brazilian industry, seeking to get increasingly closer to society with the ambition of being part of the solutions to the challenges faced by it. “Reaching 123 years is another major milestone in Gerdau’s centenary journey. In recent years, the company has transformed to become increasingly more resilient and has adapted itself to the current needs of its customers and other stakeholders. We will continue our long-term strategic vision, combining sustainable growth with the purpose of empowering people who build the future”, said Gustavo Werneck, CEO of Gerdau.

Currently, the company stands out for its production matrix based on scrap metal, making it Latin America’s biggest recycler, annually transforming more than 11 million tonnes of this raw material into steel. Around 71% of the steel produced by the company comes from the recycling process. As a result, Gerdau has one of industry’s lowest average greenhouse gas emissions (CO₂e) of 0.86 t/CO₂e per tonne of steel, which is about half the global industry average of 1.91 t/CO₂e per tonne of steel (worldsteel). The company’s long-term vision is to reduce emissions to 0.82t/ CO₂e by 2031, with the ambition of achieving carbon neutrality by 2050.

 “At this moment when we celebrate one more anniversary of Gerdau, I wish to thank and especially honor all those who – day after day – help us script this history: our employees, partners, customers and vendors. We will continue to invest in solutions and services to meet the challenges of our customers and create value for all stakeholders in order to become one of the most admired companies in the Americas”, said Werneck.