Stelco has updated its strategy to deal with COVID-19 and weaker steel demand, and it’s postponing its pig iron project while proceeding with blast furnace maintenance.
Focusing on just-in-time delivery into customer supply chains, Stelco has amended its production schedules to meet order timelines. According to a company spokesperson, COVID-19 has resulted in lower raw material demand within its integrated mill and from external customers, rendering the pig iron facility unnecessary. However, will be reassessed as market conditions improve.
In November 2019, Stelco announced plans to construct a new 1mn mt pig iron project at Lake Erie Works, for which it expected to begin shipping the material after Lake Erie received its planned relining maintenance work this quarter.
Stelco will proceed with the planned maintenance work and partially reline the blast furnace at its 2mn mt annual capacity Lake Erie Works steel mill in Ontario, but in Q3 instead.
Stelco’s Lake Erie Works was built in 1980 and has received $600mn in investments and upgrades since 2000, making it one of the newest greenfield integrated steel making facilities. It provides primary products for value-added finishing at its Hamilton Works site and directly to the automotive industry. The production reduction may also reflect lower production lines at Hamilton Works. Hamilton Works galvanizes sheet steel and has an annual production capacity of 470,000mt.