ArcelorMittal stops steel production in Spain due to workers' strike
Steel company ArcelorMittal Asturias has suspended production at its steel plant in Gijón, Spain due to a workers' union strike.
The strike made it impossible to continue operations "without serious danger to equipment and especially to employees," according to the largest steel company in the world.
ArcelorMittal has decided to initiate a work stoppage from 17:00 CET today, which will continue as long as necessary, which means that all personnel in the plant will not be able to work separately from the staff assigned to essential services to ensure safety equipment.
According to ArcelorMittal, a plan to produce long products in Asturias has been discussed with unions for several months, but no agreement was reached, prompting the two unions to go on indefinite strike.
The production capacity of the Gijón plant is about 600,000 tonnes of heavy plate per year and up to 1 million tonnes of wire rod and rails per year.
Earlier today, ArcelorMittal announced an immediate increase in base prices at its European plants. From this day, the price for hot-rolled sheet will be at least 650 euros per ton, and prices for galvanized steel will start at 750 euros per ton on a self-pickup basis.