Arcelor Tailored Blank, France, an Arcelor-Mittal group company, has signed a joint venture with Neel Metal Products for manufacturing tailor welded blanks for the automotive industry.

The 50:50 joint venture will see the setting up of laser welded facilities in India. A total investment of Rs 60 crore (Rs 600 million) will be pumped into the venture in a phased manner.

Haryana chief minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda, along with a Confederation of India Industry delegation, has been touring Europe for forging deals.

Tailor welded blanks are used in critical sheet-metal components of automobiles for safety improvement and weight reduction. Arcelor Tailored Blank is a leader in manufacturing of tailored blanks. It has facilities in the US, Europe and China.

The firm delivers products to leading automobile companies such as Ford, General Motors, Honda, Renault, Nissan and Volkswagen.

Neel Metal Products, a part of the JBM Group, supplies sheet metal components to equipment manufacturers in India.