US Steel announced it will idle a blast furnace at its Granite City Works, attributing the move to risk mitigation in light of the UAW autoworkers strike.
The facility’s blast furnace B will be temporarily idled, the company said today, adding that layoffs will happen in phases. The company did not disclose how many workers would be affected.
“Following the announcement of UAW strike actions, we are executing our risk mitigation plan to ensure our melt capacity is balanced with our order book,” the company said in a statement. “As a result, we have decided to temporarily idle blast furnace ‘B’ at Granite City Works and are reallocating volumes as needed to other domestic facilities to efficiently meet customer demand.”
The company said it will continue to “monitor and assess market conditions.”