Severstal, one of the key Russian steel producers and exporters, will start maintenance works at one of the four heating furnaces at its mill 2000, which is capable of 6 million mt of hot rolled coil production per year. The company plans to tear the facility down and to construct a new one instead. The process is expected to take around one year.
Severstal for now expects the impact of the works not to be dramatic as it is possible to increase the efficiency of the other three furnaces almost without any loss. However, the mill’s willingness to keep production high may depend on market conditions, which are quite good nowadays. In addition, Severstal has delayed the launch of its pickling line capable of processing 160,000 mt of coils per month to September, while earlier it was planned for May-June. As a result, the company’s HRC allocation is still sufficient, although the share of local sales has increased due to rather intense demand, SteelOrbis has learned.
It is worth mentioning that overall the export volume of HRC for August production from Russia will be limited. Russia’s MMK is taking its time to restart its mill 2500, while NLMK, according to sources, is enjoying better local sales, but is also in the process of maintenance.