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Carbon Steel News

Opinion: South African steel industry is an industry in distress

6th March 2020 In this opinion piece, South African Iron and Steel Institute secretary-general Charles Dednam outlines the difficulties being faced by the domestic steel industry and calls for the creation a ‘level playing field’ to enable the steel industry to contribute more fully in stimulating value-added... →

Companies urged to gear up for gas revolution in Mozambique

By: Kim Cloete 3rd March 2020 Key players in the gas industry have urged the South African government and companies to gear up for the tremendous opportunities that the gas resources uncovered in Mozambique will offer. A final investment decision (FID) has been taken for two projects, while the FID for a third project is... →

Germany moves into hydrogen with lessons from Opec, Russia

By: Bloomberg 3rd March 2020 Germany is taking its first steps to build an economy based on hydrogen instead of fossil fuels, seeking to deliver both green growth and to avoid being trapped by a small cartel of suppliers. Ministers have been quietly lining up deals with nations including Nigeria that might produce hydrogen... →

Iron-ore soars as China port stocks dip, stimulus hopes grow

By: Reuters 2nd March 2020 China's iron-ore futures hit the upside limit on Monday as declining stockpiles at ports indicated steel mills' improving appetite for the raw material, while expectations grew Beijing will roll out further support for its paralysed economy. iron-ore on the Dalian Commodity Exchange ended up 5.8%... →

Market feels project pinch

By: Mamaili Mamaila 28th February 2020 The lack of significant public infrastructure spend to boost steel consumption and construction activity are some of the challenges that the local steel tube market has to deal with, says steel industry association the Association of Steel Pipe Manufacturers (ASTPM). →

KEITUMETSE MOUMAKOE The influx of cheap small-bore steel tube imports has not aided the industry

Digitalisation beneficial for steel producers

By: Mamaili Mamaila 28th February 2020 Digitalisation will become an increasingly important strategy for steel producers to achieve a competitive advantage in the market, says metallurgical industry plant and integrated systems provider SMS group MD Pieter Bezuidenhout. →

Local steel industry still holds much potential

By: Mamaili Mamaila 28th February 2020 The current capacity and capabilities of the local steel industry are still largely understated, says export trade promotion agency the International Steel Fabricators (ISF). →

International Steel Fabricators CEO Neels van Niekerk discusses the South African steel sector. Camerawork: Creamer Media’s Nicholas Boyd. Editing: Creamer Media’s Nicholas Boyd. Recorded: 30.01.2020

Global steel output rose 2.1% y/y in January – worldsteel

By: Reuters 26th February 2020 Global crude steel production rose 2.1% to 154.4-million tonnes in January from the same month a year ago, figures from the World Steel Association showed on Tuesday. Crude steel output from China, the world's top producer and consumer of the alloy, gained 7.2% to 84.3-million tonnes in January. →

Record stash of steel in China as demand slammed

By: Bloomberg 25th February 2020 The world’s largest steel industry just sent out another warning flare as producers grapple with the coronavirus outbreak: nationwide stockpiles of reinforcement bar have swelled to the most on record. The surge is a reflection of the dislocation caused by the disease and efforts to fight it.... →

Kumba pays out 92% of HEPS to shareholders as iron-ore prices lift earnings

By: Marleny Arnoldi 18th February 2020 JSE-listed miner Kumba Iron Ore delivered a payout ratio of 92% of headline earnings per share (HEPS) for the year ended December 31, exceeding its 50% to 75% dividend payout policy. The company declared a final cash dividend of R15.99 apiece, which, combined with the interim dividend of R30.79... →

Photo by Creamer Media's Donna Slater
Kumba Iron Ore CEO Thamba Mkhwanazi

Bushveld sees battery storage potential beyond EVs

By: Simone Liedtke 17th February 2020 While the energy transition is gaining a lot of traction, integrated primary vanadium producer Bushveld Minerals CEO Fortune Mojapelo laments that the battery storage narrative is “still dominated by electric vehicles (EVs)”. He tells Engineering News & Mining Weekly that there is still a lack of... →

Bushveld Minerals CEO Fortune Mojapelo chats to Engineering News & Mining Weekly about the energy transition, how vanadium plays a role in this as well as how this fits into the company's growth plans. Video: Creamer Media's Kutlwano Matlala. Editing: Nicholas Boyd.

Metals, engineering sector set for ‘unremarkable’ growth this year

By: Tasneem Bulbulia 14th February 2020 Last year was generally challenging for both the domestic and global economy, as weakening demand, manufacturing and trade and investment restrained progress, with extended negative implications for the metals and engineering (M&E) sector, which is poised for “unremarkable” growth this year.... →

Photo by Creamer Media's Donna Slater
Dr Michael Ade

Vedanta sets sights on zinc, silver, iron-ore output growth

By: Kim Cloete 12th February 2020 CAPE TOWN (miningweekly.com) – Natural resources company Vedanta Resources is aiming to become the world's biggest producer of zinc, as well as to double its production of silver and increase its iron-ore output from 10-million to 15-million tonnes a year. Vedanta has a presence in steel,... →

Vedanta Resources executives tell Mining Weekly correspondent Kim Cloete about the group's growth plans and its corporate social investment initiatives. Video and editing: Nicholas Boyd.

Patel asked to brief lawmakers on government’s response to ongoing steel job cuts

By: Terence Creamer 11th February 2020 The opposition Democratic Alliance has written a letter to Trade and Industry Minister Ebrahim Patel calling on him to brief lawmakers about developments at steel group ArcelorMittal South Africa, which recently warned of additional job cuts at the company. AMSA confirmed on February 6 that,... →

AMSA says regulatory changes could open way for 100 MW Vanderbijl solar farm

By: Terence Creamer 6th February 2020 Steel producer ArcelorMittal South Africa (AMSA) believes there is potential to develop a 75 MW to 100 MW solar photovoltaic (PV) power plant adjacent to its Vanderbijlpark mill, in Gauteng. The JSE-listed company is also convinced that such a project could proceed relatively quickly should South... →

Photo by Creamer Media's Donna Slater
AMSA CEO Kobus Verster

AMSA slumps to R3.3bn loss amid ‘exceptionally difficult’ conditions

By: Terence Creamer 6th February 2020 Steel producer ArcelorMittal South Africa (AMSA) slumped to a R3.3-billion headline loss in 2019, which the JSE-listed group described as an exceptionally difficult one for the South African economy and also the most challenging for the world steel industry since the global financial crisis of... →

Wind-down of the Saldanha Works, in the Western Cape, to be largely completed by the end of the first quarter

Coronavirus hurts base metals, iron-ore prices

By: Simone Liedtke 5th February 2020 The outbreak and contagion of a new strain of the coronavirus – which began in the Chinese city of Wuhan in December – has contributed to renewed concerns over economic growth prospects, particularly in China. China, which is a major supplier and consumer of base metals as well as a major... →

Fallout from coronavirus expected to have a ripple effect on coal, iron-ore

By: Kim Cloete 31st January 2020 The fallout from the coronavirus in China is expected to have a ripple effect on many sectors in the Chinese economy, slow down its economic growth and impact on its coal industry and imports. Coal trader Noble Resources research head Rodrigo Echeverri says the impact had been severely... →

Global crude steel output increased 3.4% in 2019

By: Schalk Burger 28th January 2020 Global crude steel production increased by 3.4% year-on-year to 1.87-billion tonnes in 2019, despite output having contracted in all regions, except Asia and the Middle East, industry association, the World Steel Association (worldsteel), reports. Asia produced 1.34-billion tonnes of crude steel... →

Global sights set for export association

By: Mamaili Mamaila 24th January 2020 Steel industry association the Steel Tube Export Association of South Africa (Steasa) and some of its members will participate at the national pavilion at the International Wire and Tube Trade Fair 2020. →

SOARING HIGHER Exports of high-carbon and low-alloy steel tubes and pipes remain on an upward trajectory and are resilient amid export competitiveness challenges

AMSA warns of big 2019 loss, as it sheds more than 1 000 jobs

By: Terence Creamer 23rd January 2020 JSE-listed steel producer ArcelorMittal South Africa (AMSA) warned on Thursday that it would swing back into a large lossmaking position following an “exceptionally difficult” 2019 financial year, which the company described as the most challenging for the steel industry since the Global... →

Photo by Creamer Media
Wind-down of Saldanha Works (pictured) anticipated to be largely completed by the end of the first quarter

Iron-ore demand to slow, while seaborne supply rises

By: Simone Liedtke 21st January 2020 Slower demand growth, especially in China, and a decent recovery in seaborne supply is expected to continue to feature prominently in the iron-ore industry this year, says global energy, chemicals, renewables, metals and mining research and consultancy group Wood Mackenzie (WoodMac). Prices are... →

World risks 'disaster' as reuse of natural resources declines

By: Reuters 21st January 2020 The proportion of raw materials the world is reusing has fallen, researchers said on Tuesday, warning of a "global disaster" as annual consumption of natural resources rose to 100-billion tonnes for the first time. Just 8.6% of the 100-billion tonnes of materials – including minerals, metals,... →

Glencore, Merafe to retrench Rustenburg Smelter employees

By: Simone Liedtke 17th January 2020 Global miner Glencore Alloys and Merafe Resources have started a Section 189A process. The companies confirmed on Friday that written notice had been given to its employees at its joint venture (JV), the Rustenburg Smelter, in the North West. →

Seifsa welcomes lower repo rate

By: Simone Liedtke 17th January 2020 The Steel and Engineering Industries Federation of Southern Africa (Seifsa) has welcomed the South African Reserve Bank’s (SARB’s) decision to reduce the repo rate by 25 basis points, thereby “providing another boost to the stagnant economy”. The federation’s economist Marique Kruger is of the... →

Despite IRP gaps, the outlook for solar in SA has strengthened

By: Terence Creamer 17th January 2020 One of the first questions posed to Mineral Resources and Energy Minister Gwede Mantashe after Cabinet finally approved the 2019 edition of the Integrated Resource Plan (IRP 2019) in October related to the ongoing capacity addition gaps for solar photovoltaic (PV). While the IRP 2019 envisages... →

Top gold sector investor demands more action on carbon emissions

By: Reuters 11th December 2019 South Africa's biggest money manager has written to 22 gold mining companies asking them to disclose data on the emissions they cause, adding to pressure on the resources sector to tackle climate change. Investec Asset Management, which manages around £111-billion, including over $1-billion in... →

Edenville inks two key coal supply contracts

By: Simone Liedtke 11th December 2019 Aim-listed Edenville Energy has signed two new significant contracts to supply washed coal from the company’s flagship Rukwa coal project, in western Tanzania. The two contracts are for the supply of up to 6 000 t and up to 3 000 t, respectively, of washed coal a month to industrial customers in... →

Heat exchangers market value to grow by 2026

29th November 2019 The global heat exchangers market accounted for revenue of about $16.62-million in 2018 and is anticipated to generate about $29.31-million by 2026, according to a report published by global market research firm Allied Market Research. The market is projected to grow at a compound yearly growth... →

Vale to shutter Mozambique coal operations for three months

By: Bloomberg 27th November 2019 Vale, the Brazilian mining giant, plans to place its Mozambican coal operations on maintenance for three months, essentially closing the tap on about one-third of the southeast African country’s export earnings. The move could have severe implications for the country’s balance of payments and... →

Crude steel output slumps globally in October

By: Marleny Arnoldi 26th November 2019 Global crude steel production decreased by 2.8% year-on-year in October to 151-million tonnes. World Steel Association reported on Tuesday that China’s production was 0.6% lower year-on-year at 81.5-million tonnes, while India’s production was 3.4% lower year-on-year at 9.1-million tonnes. →

Climate risk widely acknowledged, but rarely incorporated into strategy

By: Marleny Arnoldi 25th November 2019 The Centre for Environmental Rights (CER) says that although the majority of South African corporate companies recognise climate change as an already occurring and imminently worsening risk, they are slow to mitigate and manage these risks, at least according to publicly accessible information.... →

Newcastle mill now firmly in ArcelorMittal South Africa’s restructuring crosshairs

By: Terence Creamer 25th November 2019 The focus of steel producer ArcelorMittal South Africa’s (AMSA’s) strategic asset footprint review has shifted to its Newcastle mill, in KwaZulu-Natal, following the completion of the first phase of the review, which resulted in a decision to close the Saldanha Steel operation in the Western... →

Vanderbijlpark, pictured, may become AMSA's only liquid-steel producer should company decide to halt Newcastle production

Anglo American joins ResponsibleSteel initiative

By: Creamer Media Reporter 25th November 2019 Diversified miner Anglo American has become a member of ResponsibleSteel, a nonprofit organisation and the steel industry's first global, multi-stakeholder standard and certification programme. ResponsibleSteel covers the entire steel supply chain, from raw material supply through steel... →

Cloud-based software anchors steel construction design

By: Halima Frost 22nd November 2019 Construction industry services and technology provider Hilti South Africa’s new, fully cloud-based steel anchor design software Profis has been well received in the South African construction sector. Launched in July, Profis Engineering is customised software used in the design of steel anchor... →

HARD JOB The new cloud-based software makes the design of steel erections, stiffeners and welding associated with the connection easier

Industry boasts third positive year despite global downturn

By: Halima Frost 22nd November 2019 Steel and Engineering Industries Federation of Southern Africa (Seifsa) chief economist and commercial executive Dr Michael Ade says the local metals and engineering (M&E) industry has thus far had a third ‘good year’ in a row. This is in spite of the current challenge of increasing intermediate... →

BRIGHT FUTURE Improved trade to to the Southern African Development Community brings with it a positive outlook for the steel construction industry

Iron-ore futures reverse losses as steel prices extend gains

By: Reuters 19th November 2019 Chinese iron ore futures recouped early losses to extend their rally into a sixth straight session on Tuesday as steel prices stretched gains amid shrinking inventories and possible fresh output restrictions to curb air pollution. Dalian Commodity Exchange's most-traded iron ore contract , with... →

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