AK Steel said today that on Saturday morning, January 20, a ladle at the caster at its Middletown Works facility malfunctioned, releasing liquid steel. No employees were injured and repairs are underway.
The company currently estimates that the melt shop will re-commence operations in approximately eight to 10 days. During that time, AK Steel will utilize production from the melt shops at its Dearborn Works and Butler Works facilities to support customers’ needs.
In a press release, AK Steel said it does not currently expect any material impact on shipments to contract customers, including our automotive customers, however the company anticipates that the outage will reduce sales to the commodity carbon spot market.