Companhia Siderúrgica Nacional was founded on April 9, 1941, becoming operational on October 1, 1946. As the first integrated flat steel producer in Brazil, CSN played a historical role in the countrys industriali......Companhia Siderúrgica Nacional was founded on April 9, 1941, becoming operational on October 1, 1946. As the first integrated flat steel producer in Brazil, CSN played a historical role in the countrys industrialization process. Steel from its mills permitted the implantation of the nations first domestic industries, the nucleus of the modern day Brazilian industrial park. Privatized in 1993, with over six decades in the market, the company continues to make history. A listed public company, with shares traded on the São Paulo and New York (NYSE) stock exchanges, CSN is one of the largest and most competitive integrated steel companies in Latin America. With an annual production capacity of 5.8 million tons and around eight thousand employees, CSN is focused on steel production, mining and infrastructure. The company has one of the most comprehensive lines of high added value flat steel on offer throughout the continent. Integrated strategy in total alignment with the core business ensures CSNs leadership of the steel sector in Brazil. The acquisition of the assets of Heartland Steel and the subsequent incorporation of CSN LLC in the United States in 2001, was the first step towards the internationalization of the company. Currently, company assets consist of an integrated steel mill, five industrial units, two of them abroad (the United States and Portugal), iron ore, limestone and dolomite mines, a major flat steel distributor, port terminals, as well as shares in railroads and two hydroelectric plants. With firm and innovative management, the company believes in the entrepreneurial power of Brazilian capital and in the countrys vast competitive potential in the steel industry. CSN supplies a number of business segments both in Brazil and overseas, with the Automobile, Civil Construction, Packaging, Home Appliances and OEM segments deserving special mention.