The Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) has initiated investigations into alleged dumping and subsidizing of certain hot-rolled carbon steel plate and high-strength low-alloy steel plate originating in or exported from the Republic of India (India) and the Russian Federation (Russia). The investigation follows a complaint filed on April 20, 2015 by Essar Steel Algoma claiming […]
Construction of Essar Steel’s Minnesota taconite operation is accelerating now that the project is fully financed. The $1.9 billion project near Nashwauk involves the construction of a taconite plant with a total annual production capacity of 7.0 million tons of iron ore pellets. The pellets will be initially sent to Essar Steel Algoma and to […]
Essar Steel Algoma is asking for support from the City of Sault Ste Marie in challenging a request by the Independent Contractors and Business Association (ICBA) and the province of British Columbia for ‘regional exemption’ of anti-dumping and countervailing duties on rebar imports. “Although we are not a rebar producer, it is our view that […]
Lee Steel Corp, a privately owned steel service center in Novi, Michigan, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection on April 13, 2015. In a court filing the company cited “financial difficulties resulting from the present severe collapse in steel prices.” The company listed debt of approximately$10.8 million. The vast majority of the debt owed is […]
Vessels transporting iron ore on the Great Lakes are encountering heavy ice in the Whitefish Bay area. Breaking the ice has been challenging for US and Canadian Coast Guard vessels. Strong winds over the weekend pushed ice from Lake Superior to the bay, covering about 35 square miles. Broken ice plate 24-30 inches thick clogs […]
There have been so many announcements made by the integrated steel mills (US Steel and ArcelorMittal especially) since the beginning of 2015 we thought we would provide details on various blast furnace outages and other equipment and plants associated with steel making that have been affected by slowing order books in the energy sectors and […]
A blustery March 25th marked the beginning of the Great Lakes shipping season and the opening of the Soo Locks. The first lake freighter to enter the Locks was the Edwin H. Gott from Great Lakes Fleet Inc. The Gott, named for the former US Steel chairman and CEO, entered the Locks at 11:05 a.m. […]
The domestic steel mills are resorting to adjustments in supply as a weapon against the chronic short lead times which are helping to push flat rolled steel prices lower and lower. The heavy lifting is being done by the integrated steel mills, especially by U.S. Steel which has taken three blast furnaces down over the […]
Steel Market Update saw an interesting report on the impact of lower scrap prices to the steel industry. The report was produced by metals and mining analysts, Timna Tanners of Bank of America Merrill Lynch Research for her clients. A question Steel Market Update receives on a regular basis is what is the marginal cost […]
Essar Steel Algoma announced a return to profitability with a net income of CDN$26.8 million for the third quarter ending December 31, 2014, after reporting a net loss of CDN 38.6 million for the same period of 2013. Steel shipments for the quarter increased 4.7 percent year over year to 618,538 tons. Average realized sales […]
USW Local 2251 reports that Essar Steel Algoma is terminating 55 positions due to a decline in plate steel orders. According to a report by Soo Today, most of the employees have not completed their probationary period. The job cuts follow an announcement Jan. 23 confirming a contract for 1500 tonnes of plate for construction […]
Flat rolled steel prices continued to drop this week as the domestic steel mills struggled with holes in their order books due to growing inventories at the service centers, a sharp drop off in pipe and tube orders associated with the energy markets, and the continued flow of imported steel (which is part of the […]
Now that Essar Steel Algoma has its liquidity problems under control, the company is embarking on a CDN $350-$400 million investment plan in its steel mill located in Canada that will span the next 5 to 7 years. The plan includes optimizing operating capability, enhancing product quality, modernizing production lines and expanding the company’s product […]
Low oil prices and the proliferation of pipe and tube imports at below market prices are causing manufacturers to idle mills and lay off workers. The latest round of layoffs comes from Tenaris which announced it will lay off 500 employees in Conroe, Texas and in Blytheville, Arkansas. “The energy industry’s present circumstances have driven […]
US Steel announced Monday it will idle its US Steel Tubular Operations in Lorain, Ohio. In a letter to employees, US Steel said the layoffs are a “result of a decline in tubular market conditions, which is impacting demand for the plant’s products.” Layoffs affecting 614 employees will begin around March 8 and continue through […]
Flat rolled steel prices began to stabilize this past week after having peaked in the middle of August at $675 per ton (hot rolled) and then slowly sliding to a low of $630 per ton during the week ending November 1, 2014. The SMU HRC average actually rose slightly to $635 per ton this past […]
Steel Market Update is beginning to see weakness in demand based on the results of our last two flat rolled steel market surveys. The manufacturing companies are the first to report the weakness and service centers are beginning to follow. Our Premium (and free trial) level members can review the Power Point presentation that we […]
Essar Steel Algoma reported CDN $85.2 million EBITDA for second quarter FY 2015 ending September 30, 2014. Net income was CDN $52.9 million compared to a net losses of CDN $80.8 million in Q1 FY 2015 and CDN $110.1 million in the same period in 2013. Shipment volume increased 28 percent from the previous quarter […]
Essar Steel Algoma announced a “turnaround performance” in their second quarter FY 2015 guidance for the period ending September 30, 2014. The company expects second quarter steel shipments to equal 680,000-690,000 tons with EBITDA of CDN $75-85 million, compared to 530,000 tons and CDN $12.4 million EBITDA in Q1. Second quarter EBITDA projections far exceed […]
Essar Steel’s Canadian entities have been struggling with financing this year and now that Essar Steel Algoma problems appear resolved, Essar Steel Minnesota LLC (ESML) finds itself in dire need of capital. The $1.8 billion taconite plant under construction in Nashwauk, Minn., failed to raise the $361 million in equity needed in time to secure […]
Consolidation may not be over yet. We saw a report this evening out of Minnesota about how Essar Steel Minnesota has failed to secure financing to complete the $1.8 billion taconite pellet facility. The company’s India parent company was so over-leveraged it was put on the top ten watch list by Credit Suisse one year […]
Essar Steel Algoma has received permission from the Ontario Superior Court of Justice for a recapitalization and refinancing plan that was approved by shareholders in a September 10, 2014 meeting. The Plan of Arrangement allows for a capital infusion of up to $100 million from the Essar Global Fund Ltd to complete scheduled capital improvements […]
On Monday, Nucor announced their intention to acquire Gallatin Steel and its approximately 1.8 million tons of hot rolling capacity. Today, AK Steel and Steel Dynamics (SDI) completed the purchase of the Severstal North America assets. The biggest pieces of the Severstal deal are the Dearborn steel mill, which went to AK Steel, and the Columbus […]
On Monday, Nucor announced their intention to acquire Gallatin Steel and its approximately 1.8 million tons of hot rolling capacity. On Tuesday, AK Steel and Steel Dynamics (SDI) completed the purchase of the Severstal North America assets. The biggest pieces of the Severstal deal are the Dearborn steel mill, which went to AK Steel, and the […]
We will conduct our early August steel market analysis (survey) beginning first thing on Monday morning. If you receive an invitation to participate please take a few minutes to click on the link which will take you to SurveyMonkey.com where you can interact with our questionnaire. If by chance you would rather direct someone else […]
With the announcement of the sale of Russian owned Severstal North America assets to AK Steel (Dearborn, Mountain State Carbon & Joint Ventures) and Steel Dynamics (Columbus) for $2.325 billion, the market is now asking what, or who, is next. There are two mills that are being mentioned. One, Gallatin Steel, a hot rolled mini-mill […]
Essar Steel Algoma would like to stress that it is has not filed for bankruptcy or commenced insolvency proceedings in Canada or the U.S. according to a clarification document received by SMU. After reaching an agreement with its parent company for an infusion of cash, deleveraging of its balance sheet, and refinancing of its senior […]
Essar Steel Algoma has filed for Chapter 15 bankruptcy protection at the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Delaware and the Ontario Superior Court of Justice as part of its restructuring efforts. The filing under Chapter 15 in the U.S. is a recognition proceeding,” said a spokesperson for Essar Steel Allgoma. “The sole purpose of the US […]
In the last issue of Steel Market Update I warned that there are lots of rumors swamping the steel market as negotiations for Severstal NA heat up (or are perhaps already over) and Gallatin entertains bids on their mill (half owned by Gerdau and half ArcelorMittal). The other mill issue is the Chapter 15 (Canadian […]
Essar Steel Algoma Inc., announced on Wednesday that Esssar Global Fund Limited, will provide $300 million of equity infusion along with planned refinancing of Algoma’s senior secured debt. The following press release from Essar Steel Algoma contains details of the agreement. SAULT STE. MARIE, ONTARIO, July 16, 2014 – Essar Steel Algoma Inc. (“Algoma”) announced […]