Arcelor expects the recession in Germany and the cost of CO2 to weigh down the Gijón and Avilés lines

2023-09-05 04:01:02

The CEO (executive director) of ArcelorMittal Asturias, Philippe Meyran, warned yesterday in Gijón of possible complications at the end of the year in the marketing of various products from the Asturian steel industry, from the Gijón and Avilés factories, due to the weak economy due to the recession in Germany and the costs of CO2 emission rights that hinder the competitiveness of the European steel industry compared to that of factories in other parts of the world that do not have to bear them. Sources familiar with the situation in the sector point out that the products from the Asturian factory that will see their demand decrease are tinplate, which is produced in Avilés, and wire rod, which is manufactured in Gijón.

Philippe Meyran pointed out that he sees the prospects for the steel market in the near future as “cloudy”, due to the fact that the CO2 emission rates that the European industry has “were weighed down with respect to our extra-European competition and we see it in several of our products” and, secondly, due to the poor prospects for the European economy: “up to now Spain is doing relatively well, but we know that Germany is going into recession and that is going to pull us down”.

Those problems that he predicts in some of the workshops in Gijón and Avilés due to the storm clouds in the European economy and the costs of CO2, will not have to affect employment. Asked about it, the CEO of ArcelorMittal in Asturias pointed out that “we know how to manage employment like we always do; there is no particular concern about that.”

The manager of the steel multinational also referred to the investment projects in the Asturian factories, which will guarantee their long-term future. Regarding the most advanced, the electric furnace for the Gijón steel mill, he pointed out that there is still no set date for the start of this work since “we still have some work to do before closing (the date) completely, but I am optimistic about that “. As for the project to replace a blast furnace with a direct reduction iron ore (DRI) plant, he noted that “it’s still a bit greener; we’re working on it, hopefully by the end of the year or early next year we will have a little more news”. In addition, he pointed out that the project to build a second electric furnace for the Avilés factory is maintained, although in the longer term, because “we have to make the transition to decarbonization, we know that blast furnaces have a long life.”

Pollution

Meyran held a meeting yesterday with the mayoress of Gijón, Carmen Moriyón, and three of her councillors, after which the mayoress indicated that “it has been a very positive contact with the CEO of Arcelor. We have conveyed our firm commitment to the health of the people of Gijón and our confidence in the decarbonisation process in which they are immersed”. Regarding pollution, Meyran pointed out that “my hope for Asturias is that we have a green industry in a natural paradise and obviously we are working on that.”

Meyran also indicated that the capacity of the Gijón factory has been fully recovered after the last serious incident, with a fire in one of the blast furnaces, pointing out that this furnace is now safer and its useful life has been increased.