Australian steelmaker OneSteel Limited announced on May 4 that it currently expects its Whyalla blast furnace to return to normal operations in approximately three to six weeks, a delay of around one to four weeks from the timing provided in the company's previous update on April 21.
As SteelOrbis previously reported, on April 21 the company said that following stoppages which emerged over the previous weekend it completed the required repairs to its Whyalla blast furnace, but as of the morning of the given date had been unable to recommence operations due to difficulty in reestablishing connections between the blast furnace tap holes and tuyeres.
OneSteel now says that the method used to re-establish connections has not proven successful. The company is now pursuing an alternative method that has increased the estimated time for returning the blast furnace to normal operations.
The company also reiterated its earlier statement that, due to available EAF capacity and the company's strong broad-based inventory position, OneSteel expects minimal impact on its ability to meet expected customer demand across the majority of its products and customers. Additionally, the producer will have recourse to imports to supplement products where required.
The company does not believe the interruption will have a material impact on its earnings for the second half of this financial year.