ThyssenKrupp officials announced at their annual general meeting Friday that the company will delay the planned start of its $4 billion stainless steel production plant in Calvert, Alabama, due to a significant drop in steel demand.
The startup of the facility was planned for early 2010. ThyssenKrupp's chairman of the executive board, Ekkehard Schulz, stated at the meeting, "We will set and evaluate priorities, whether it makes more sense to move some investments to a later date." Mr. Schulz continued by saying that the Alabama plant would definitely start later than planned; however, no specific time frame was mentioned.
Schulz also stated that the company expected its high-grade steel division to post a loss at the outset of the fiscal year.