Steel news of the week - August 22, 2005

Friday, 26 August 2005 23:39:00 (GMT+3)   |  
       

Steel news of the week - August 22, 2005

Low prices and high costs make steelmakers weep Low prices, sluggish demand, and soaring scrap and gas prices are making steelmakers nostalgic for the third quarter 2004. “Last year's third quarter was the best the industry ever had,” said analyst Charles Bradford. “This is going to be a terrible third quarter.” The jump in scrap prices, however, may bode well for the fourth quarter. Earlier this year, scrap bundles sold for $300 per ton but then dropped to $150 per ton. They have since rebounded in August to $210 per ton. Out with the old, in with the new Following Bill McKenzie’s retirement, Mittal Steel USA has appointed Brian M. James as general manager of the company’s Weirton plant, effective immediately. Mittal says Mr. James, a former senior staff engineer for Mittal USA-Cleveland, will be responsible for all operations at the facility with “a lot of focus on the efficient and profitable making of steel.” Independent Steelworkers Union president Mark Glyptis says that the ISU will work with Mr. James to ensure the Weirton plant remains relevant and competitive. Kids to steer clear of hazardous waste State-hired contractors will begin work in September to clean up hazardous material at the former Wolman Steel Co. scrap and junkyard in Waterville, Maine. The site, which contains dangerously high levels of lead and PCBs (polychlorinated biphenyls), is inauspiciously located next to the George J. Mitchell Elementary School. Tracy Weston Kelly, the Department of Environmental Protection project manager says that during the cleanup, “School will be in session and we will take extra precautions,” adding “kids should stay clear.” Families to live in steel factory Forward-thinking real estate developers O’Neil properties will turn the former Worthington Steel site in East Whitefield, Pennsylvania into a suburban paradise. In the tradition of new urbanism, a reaction to urban sprawl, housing developers re-purpose and recycle former industrial urban property into compact, elegantly designed communities like the planned development in East Whitefield. The 77-acre site will be transformed into a mixed-use community. The former steel factory will be turned into 600 multi-family residences, 500’000 square feet of lifestyle retail, restaurants, entertainment, and 700’000 square feet of office space. Construction is scheduled to begin in spring of 2006. Bethlehem: the new Sin City? Another steel plant conversion that may take place is Las Vegas Sands Corp.’s proposed plan to transform the former Bethlehem Steel plant site into a $300 million slots parlor. While the Moravians (the ancestral people of Bethlehem) and Mayor John Callahan oppose the project because of negative impacts that gambling could have on the community, others feel that the Moravians are trying to impose on other with their belief system, and think the casino would be good for the local economy. The city council could vote on the proposal as soon as September 20.

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