Air Liquide SA announced that it has signed a long-term supply contract with ThyssenKrupp Steel Europe AG in the Rhine-Ruhr area, Germany. Deliveries under the agreement include 4,600 tonnes per day of oxygen, plus nitrogen and argon, which will be supplied to ThyssenKrupp's steelworks based in the Duisburg cluster, the largest steel production region in Europe, supplying notably the needs of the automotive industry in Germany. The gases will be supplied via Air Liquide's 500 kilometer local pipeline network, which already serves customers in the steel, chemical and petrochemical industries in the Rhine-Ruhr area.

This pipeline is fed by Air Liquide Air Separation Units, including Germany's oxygen production plant which was started up by Air Liquide in 2012.