Algeria-based El Hadjar steel complex, formerly known as ArcelorMittal Annaba, has entered 2020 with a serious problem on the steelmaking side. According to local media sources, the company has been forced once again to halt operations at its BF No. 2 as it has already done many times previously. The previous stoppage was in November for two weeks, after which the facility was restarted. It is reported that the BF has been idle for five days now and that attempts to restart it have failed, and so there is no disclosed timeline for the resumption of operations, SteelOrbis understands.
The company experienced so much trouble in operations last year that the government decided to take action in order to regulate El Hadjar’s work. Some inspection committees were created in order to evaluate the situation in different aspects of the company’s operations. However, market players doubt that the result will be positive. “Today hardly anyone considers them [El Hadjar] as a competitor or sustainable supplier as they are on and off in the market,” a trading source said.