ArcelorMittal Hunedoara announced a moratorium on production at its steel plant in Romania because of skyrocketing electricity and natural gas prices.
The Romanian arm of the world’s largest steelmaker temporarily ceased operations December 11, 2019 at its plant, which employs 640 workers and 200 contractors. The company said the price of electricity and gas are significantly higher than they are in other European countries with important steel producers, like France and Germany.
Hunedoara, which operates with an electric arc furnace, is struggling to compete in a market with weak demand and high levels of imported steel because of its soaring energy costs, according to the company.
ArcelorMittal purchased the Hunedoara steel mill in 2003 and has since invested around $128mn in technical and environmental improvements.