The US Department of Commerce denied almost all of NLMK Pennsylvania’s requested exclusions from Section 232 tariffs, according to local news reports. The DOC also denied exclusions for NLMK’s operations in Indiana.
According to government documents, the DOC denied 74 requests for slab, and one exclusion request by the Farrell, Pennsylvania operation is listed as in the surrebuttal period, meaning the request is still under review. The company previously filed documents claiming the exclusions are necessary due to inadequate supplies of US-produced slab.
The Farrell mill imports most of its steel slab from Russia, where Novolipetsk Steel, the parent company of NLMK, is based. Between 2016 and 2017, NLMK said that it was able to supply 2 percent of its slab from US domestic producers and had to import the remainder of its input needs.
In supporting documents, the company said, “This deficit will persist even after the tariff, because integrated mills have no incentive to sell slabs to their competitors, and their rolling capacity would still be higher than their slab-making capacity.”
Additionally, sources close to SteelOrbis have confirmed that the DOC also denied three of JSW Steel USA’s requests for tariff exemptions on slab imports from India, where JSW is based. Other requests from the company are pending in the surrebuttal period.