Founded as Société Anonyme des laminoirs, forges, fonderies et usines de la Providence the company had three steel production sites at Marchienne-au-Pont in Belgium, and Réhon and Hautmont in France.

In 1836 the Englishman Thomas Bonehill built puddling furnaces for the Puissant and Licot de Nîmes families;[1] in 1838 the company Société Anonyme des laminoirs, forges, fonderies et usines de la Providence was formed by Clément-Joseph Delbruyère together with Edmond et Jules Puissant and Thomas Bonehill with a permitted capital of 1500,000 francs in order to construct a coke fire blast furnace, together with other equipment from Puissant and Bonehill's company la société le grand laminoir de la Providence, including steam engines (50 and 80 hp), and metal working equipment including hammers, four rolling mills, shears, puddling furnaces, casting equipment and molds as well as associated land, workshops and offices, and refractory brick manufacturing facilities.

[3] In 1849 Bonehill's successor Alphonse Halbou patented a method for the production of I-beams by rolling.

Mariupol, on the Sea of Azov, made heavy losses, and by 1902 went into administration, owing 6 million francs to the Providence company, and had to be re-financed by the Banque de l'Union Parisienne.

[7] This was contrary to the trade unions' preference for regional consolidation;[8] the balance was not restored until 1979 when Thy-Marcinelle et Monceau (TMM) acquired the La Providence group from Cockerill-Ougrée-Providence et Espérance Longdoz, becoming Thy-Marcinelle-Providence.

The coking plant was no longer to be maintained, and the possibility of closure of blast furnace 4 also raised.

Usinor entered discussions with the industrial group Duferco with a view to continue hot steel production at the plant.

[10] Blast furnace production was stopped in Nov. 2008 due to low economic demand (see 2007–2012 global economic crisis),[12][16] Production at the plant was halted for three years; by 2011 the joint venture between NLMK and Duferco had ended, with NLMK acquiring the joint venture's flat production at Clabecq and La Louviere and other sites for $600 million, supplied by its own blast furnaces; Duferco continued to seek a partner or buyer for Carsid.