Africa-Press – Liberia. Kleber Silva, Executive Vice President and CEO of ArcelorMittal Mining, has returned to Liberia with a strong message focused on health, safety, and the future of Liberia’s workforce.
The Brazilian mining executive, known across the global mining industry for his strategic leadership and technical expertise, visited ArcelorMittal Liberia’s Yekepa operations on Tuesday for the company’s annual Health and Safety Day celebration.
His visit comes just weeks after he joined employees and executives in marking ArcelorMittal Liberia’s 20th anniversary, a milestone celebration that included the onboarding of a new batch of employees of over 230 young Liberians as artisans and process operators under a renewed drive for local employment and skills development in Liberia.
Silva’s presence in Liberia is widely viewed within the company as a signal of strategic importance. Staff often associate his visits with major developments in ArcelorMittal’s operations, at least, the company’s ambitious Phase II expansion project. The multi-billion-dollar expansion includes a new ore concentrator (first in Liberia) on the verge of commissioning and expanded rail and port facilities, expected to increase production capacity largely while also creating thousands of direct and indirect jobs for Liberia. Under Klaber, ArcelorMittal is the largest out-of-government employer with more than seven thousand direct and direct jobs occupied at 98% by Liberians.
Under the leadership of Klaber, ArcelorMittal has invested $800 million to upgrade the 243-kilometer heavy haul railway, originally built to U.S. heavy haul standards, to support the daily operation of five ore trains, each carrying 120 wagons.
As part of this massive infrastructure enhancement, the company has completed the full replacement of wooden ties with steel sleepers across the entire rail line. Additionally, all nine rail loops are being extended to accommodate longer trains, and the WabTec rail control system is being upgraded to improve operational efficiency and safety.
ArcelorMittal has also acquired nine new GE locomotives and 500 additional wagons equipped with undercarriages. New sidings and level crossings have been constructed, and the entire railway has been reinforced with rocks, including the expansion of the Buchanan yard to handle increased traffic and logistics demands.
But in his latest return, Silva’s message was not just about growth or production. Standing before dozens of workers in Yekepa on Tuesday morning, he sounded a clarion call for vigilance, responsibility, and shared accountability in health and safety.
“Please, let’s be very, very strong,” Silva urged. “A mine of safety, where the best does not appear, where we correct the best, where we work preventively, and we are safe.”
A seasoned mining engineer with more than three decades of industry experience including senior roles at mining giants Vale and Anglo-American Silva has long championed the integration of safety and sustainability into large-scale mining operations. Since joining ArcelorMittal in 2017, he has helped steer the company’s global mining strategy, with a consistent emphasis on improving operational standards and cultivating a culture of zero harm.
In Yekepa, his voice carried not only the weight of his corporate title but the conviction of someone deeply invested in the welfare of workers and communities that are impacted by ArcelorMittal mining in Liberia.
“There’s nothing more precious than this,” he said, referring to the safety of workers. “We think about it all the time in order to have preventive actions, in order to create an environment where incidents do not happen anymore.”
Silva cited ArcelorMittal’s Tarso Amitar site as a global benchmark, which he said has achieved 34 consecutive years without a lost-time accident, a feat he believes is entirely possible for Liberia as well. “We are building that here in Liberia,” he said with conviction.
With more than 10,000 people currently working across ArcelorMittal Liberia’s operations, including the mines, rail, and port facilities, Silva emphasized the shared responsibility that each employee carries to maintain a safe and healthy work environment.
“For the people we love, for our families, for ourselves, for God, for everything that is most valuable in our lives, let’s work very, very strong—all of us,” he said.
He stressed that safety must be lived and practiced continuously—“24/7”—not only at work but at home as well.
“Let’s celebrate each day we can go home safe,” Silva said. “If we work together, we construct this every single day.”
As ArcelorMittal moves into a transformative phase in Liberia, the role of leaders like Silva becomes even more pronounced. His dual emphasis on growth and care on expansion and safety embodies the company’s vision of building a world-class mining operation anchored in local development, skills transfer, and long-term partnership with Liberia.
Silva’s presence in Liberia is widely viewed within the company as a signal of strategic importance.
“I’m sure we’ll be extremely proud to say that Liberia, our mine, our railroad, our plant, our port—achieved zero [harm] forever,” he said. “And we can continue to operate in this beautiful mine and beautiful country forever, without any incident.”
Silva’s latest visit has once again reminded employees, partners, and the broader Liberian public that ArcelorMittal’s success is not only measured in tons of ore shipped, but in the lives it empowers, protects, and uplifts.
During a landmark visit to Liberia in 2024, ArcelorMittal Executive Chairman Lakshmi Mittal committed an additional US$1.4 billion investment which brought the company’s total commitment in Liberia by then to over US$3 billion as part of its transformative Phase Two Expansion Project, now under the determined leadership of ArcelorMittal Mining CEO Kleber Silva.
Beyond its operational scope, the project has already created more than 3000 new jobs, would increase tax fees and royalties, as well as enhance county social development funds, and provide critical skills training both locally and internationally, especially when the 3rd Amended Mineral Development Agreement is concluded.
The expansion strengthens ArcelorMittal Liberia’s position as Liberia’s largest private investor and a long-term development partner.
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