Steel Mills

CRU: ArcelorMittal Ordered To Shut Down Hot Strip Mill in France
Written by Rosy Finlayson
June 29, 2023
France’s labor inspectorate has told Luxembourg-headquartered ArcelorMittal to temporarily close the hot end of its Fos-sur-Mer steel works because insufficient protection measures are exposing employees to high levels of toxic products and dust.
The order will lead to the shutdown of the entire site, local media reported. The plant has been the subject of several formal notices from local authorities, and legal complaints for pollution filed by local residents and non-governmental organizations.
ArcelorMittal has launched an action plan to reduce the risk to workers at the 5-million-metric-ton-per-year Fos-sur-Mer mill in southern France. Employees and the social and economic committee have approved the measures.
Collapse in Margins Means Steelmakers May Be Willing To Take Capacity Offline
This shutdown order comes as European steel mill margins have collapsed amid sharp falls in prices over the last couple of months. As such, while it is not being done as a commercially driven decision, the capacity thus removed may not be entirely poorly timed from the perspective of producers.
A recent force majeure at Salzgitter, resulting from flooding, could be viewed in a similar light, although that disruption looks to be of a smaller scale and may already be coming to an end.
That said, there is an offset with ArcelorMittal’s Asturias blast furnace A now due to restart at the end of next week and the company’s Dunkerque furnace also looking to come back online. Without a pickup in buying or an increase in import prices, the net impact on the European market balance may be insufficient to drive an upturn in prices.
This article was originally published by CRU, SMU’s parent company, on June 29.
By CRU research analyst Rosy Finlayson and CRU principal analyst Matthew Watkins
Rosy Finlayson
Read more from Rosy FinlaysonLatest in Steel Mills

Millett sees tariffs, CORE case benefiting SDI
Steel Dynamics' top exec thinks Trump’s tariff policies, as well as the results from the recent CORE case, will prove advantageous to the Fort Wayne, Ind.-based steelmaker and aluminum company.

USW digs in on opposition to USS-Nippon deal
“We remain deeply concerned about the national and economic security implications of the subject transaction,” the union stated in the letter dated April 21.

SDI’s Q1 earnings slump on-year, but up sequentially
SDI earnings slip in first quarter year over year, but are up sequentially.

POSCO inks MoU with Hyundai on Louisiana EAF mill
POSCO has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Hyundai Motor Group that includes an equity investment in Hyundai’s previously announced EAF mill set to be built in Louisiana.

CRU: Tata Steel looks to shed 1,600 jobs in the Netherlands
The company said, “The challenging demand conditions in Europe driven by geopolitical developments, trade and supply chain disruptions and escalating energy costs have affected the operating costs and financial performance."