ArcelorMittal Poland permanently closes its raw materials department in Krakow

ArcelorMittal attributes this decision to the macroeconomic situation resulting from the pandemic. “Virtually all steel industries have limited their activities; some of them decided to temporarily close their factories. Macroeconomic data show that the likelihood of a quick recovery in steel demand is very small. ArcelorMittal Poland has been forced to take ongoing measures to adapt to the decline in demand, ”the statement says.

- The COVID-19 pandemic has enormous implications for the European steel industry. While we have seen a slight increase in demand over several weeks, mainly due to restocking, demand for steel is still significantly lower than it was before the pandemic. This means we have to make difficult decisions - in this case, unfortunately, the decision to permanently close the blast furnace and the steel plant in Krakow, ”said Sanjay Samaddar, Chairman and CEO of ArcelorMittal Poland.

In addition to the pandemic, the company identified several other structural problems that made it unprofitable. ArcelorMittal included “the lack of effective measures to protect the European market and the recent decision of the European Commission to further increase duty-free quotas on steel imports from outside the EU at a time when steel demand in Europe fell sharply; high energy costs and the imposition of surcharges in the capacity market, which will come into effect in January 2021, as well as an imbalance between European steel producers and producers from third countries, which, unlike ferrous metallurgy in the EU, do not bear the costs associated with EU ETS (European CO2 Trading Scheme). Emissions prices are on the rise, ArcelorMittal, stressing that these factors are driving production outside Europe to countries without ETS. So we have what we call a carbon leak in practice.

“Taking these factors into account, we decided to concentrate pig iron production on two blast furnaces at our branch in D вbrowa Gornicza. This will enable us to improve our price competitiveness. We want to continue the production of steel in Poland and continue supplying our customers according to a scheme that involves the operation of some of the raw materials in only one place. “We will work closely with our social partners to develop the best possible solutions for the employees affected by this decision,” explained Sanjay Samaddar, President and CEO of ArcelorMittal Poland.