Liberty Steel shut down one blast furnace each at its steel plants in Ostrava and Galati, which led to the shutdown of pig iron production in Europe.
Earlier, in the summer, a blast furnace was idle at the Dunaferr plant in Hungary. Ostrava Blast Furnace No. 3 was shut down starting October 23 due to weak steel demand in Europe due to macroeconomic issues. During the shutdown, the company will carry out a short care and maintenance program to improve the stability and reliability of the Ostrava furnace.
Full employment will be maintained while customer orders will continue to be fulfilled as the relevant rolling mills will be continue to work using the previously prepared stock. However, unions at the plant are concerned about the situation and are calling on the company and government officials to meet to clarify its financial position and plans for the future.
Blast furnace No. 5 of the Galati Metallurgical Plant was stopped due to harsh weather conditions on the Black Sea and a sharply decreased water level on the Danube River. This affected the supply of sufficient raw materials for the safe operation of the furnace, notes Galati's representative. The firm plans to restart the plant later this month.
Last month, Ostrava began closing its VKB 11 coke oven, one of three operating at the plant, due to inefficiency and growing unprofitability amid market overcapacity.
Liberty Steel said it plans to invest in the company in the coming years to transform it into a carbon-neutral steel producer.
Demand for steel in the European Union is expected to rise this year will fall 3% this year amid persistently high energy prices, the European Steel Association (Eurofer) said in July.
German conglomerate Thyssenkrupp said this week that previously optimistic steel market profit expectations had been significantly weakened by the combination economic weakness in Germany and other markets, as well as higher raw material and energy prices.
At the same time, importing cheap Chinese steel into Europe is an additional headache.
