Last week, the leading HBI producer in Libya closed a tender for 60,000 mt of merchant HBI at $340/mt FOB, up by $5-10/mt from the early December sales price, as SteelOrbis has learned from the market. Also, the volume in the previous tender was slightly over 40,000 mt. Firm demand for HBI and limited supply have been behind the latest price increase. Some market sources believe that the producer may push for a further price rise in February since for now it is the only producer in the market with a stable allocation of merchant HBI.
CBAM costs (verified values) for Libyan HBI in Europe are calculated at €38/mt. according to SteelOrbis Research, while those from Qatar, the US and Venezuela are estimated at €40-45/mt.
Offers of Libyan HBI have already been heard at $370/mt CFR in Europe and most probably volumes will end up in this destination as large Turkish buyers have been asking for $350/mt CFR or so.