Liberty Steel confirme le financement de ses activités à Liège

Nouveau rebondissement à Liège: Liberty Steel confirme finalement le financement de la première étape du plan de transformation sur ses sites en bord de Meuse.

En toute fin d’année dernière, Liberty Steel Liège avait annoncé aux ouvriers renoncer à un plan de relance, pourtant validé par la justice belge un mois plus tôt , suite à son incapacité à trouver de l’argent frais (devant venir de la filiale roumaine du sidérurgiste) nécessaire à l’achat de matières premières pour l’approvisionnement des sites de production. Ce qui mettait en péril l’avenir de plus de 600 ouvriers. 

Du fait des liens industriels avec le site de Liberty Steel à Dudelange, la situation liégeoise était également suivie de près par les syndicats et ouvriers au Luxembourg .

Ce vendredi, Liberty Steel a effectué un virage à 180° en confirmant le financement de la première étape du plan de transformation de Liège. «La direction de Liberty Liège annonce que le financement nécessaire à la réalisation de la première étape du plan de transformation de l’entreprise, qui comprend deux usines à Flémalle et Tilleur, a été reçu de Liberty Steel Group. Ce financement, combiné à l’aboutissement d’un certain nombre de négociations commerciales, permet d’envisager le redémarrage des usines pour la mi-février, conformément à l’engagement pris par Liberty auprès des autorités», indique le groupe sidérurgique, dans une communication officielle, avant de souligner que «le plan de transformation, qui assurera à l’entreprise liégeoise un avenir durable à long terme, devrait être bien avancé d’ici au printemps».

Un peu plus loin, Toker Ozcan, CEO de Liberty Steel Greensteel, a réaffirmé son engagement à voir les activités de Liberty Steel s’inscrire durablement à Tilleur et à Flémalle.

Le sidérurgiste a également rappelé avoir déjà apporté plus de 40 millions d’euros de financement dans ses deux sites liégeois depuis leur acquisition en juillet 2019, tout en soulignant avoir vu ses plans d’investissement à long terme freinés par la médiocrité du marché de l’acier en 2019, avant que l’activité ne subisse l’impact négatif de la pandémie et des perturbations de la chaîne d’approvisionnement.

Si l’annonce va rassurer du côté luxembourgeois, du fait de l’importance de l’activité liégeoise dans les approvisionnements du site de Dudelange, le manque de certitudes autour de la surface financière du sidérurgiste risque d’agacer encore un peu plus les syndicats liégeois.

Écrit par Jeremy Zabatta

Publié le 14.01.2022

Europe plate: Market slow to resume

London, 14 January (Argus) — Sentiment in the European plate market has been mixed this month, as Italian mills pushed for higher prices after offering discounts in late December, but competition remained high.

The Argus monthly ex-works Italy plate assessment fell by €20/t to €840/t, but ex-works plate in northwest Europe was flat at €970/t.

Italian producers lowered plate prices to €840-850/t ex-works for base grade in the second half of December in order to boost their competitiveness, but have started to lift offers to €860/t ex-works, reflecting increased energy costs and anticipating that slab prices will pick up. At the same time, some suppliers were heard willing to provide at least €10/t discounts to the latest workable prices to fill their order books, as well as in the face of cheap import offers and sufficient margins.

Plate offers from different Asian countries were heard at €820/t cfr and slightly below to main European ports. But complications with quotas and finances made imports from Indonesia and India less attractive, with a South Korean supplier targeting other markets, a European participant said. In particular, an offer of S355J2 grade was heard at $970/t cfr to north Africa from South Korea.

Northwest European producers were sold out in December and resisted the downward pressure. Actual trading is yet to resume, as many participants have only returned from holidays this week.

European HRC prices soften amid slowing demand as mills try to hold firm

European HRC prices declined marginally Jan. 13 as market participants reported a wide spread on coils, dependent on volumes relative to each mill. Sources have said they feel the market is in a state of uncertainty, with buyers holding back from purchasing material.

A large European mill announced Eur1,160/mt delivered Europe for North European HDG prices, with a range of Eur20-25/mt for other regions, which would constitute an overall increase of around Eur30-50/mt.

A Nordic buyer source cited a North European HRC tradable value at 920/mt ex-works Ruhr, with tendencies toward Eur900/mt growing closer for some based on a lack of demand.

An Italian mill source said price increases would be possible but was unsure if they would come to fruition.

The source told S&P Global Platts that majority of mills were trying to prevent any decline in price, but whether this was a sustainable option was doubtful.

“Right now, the supply is there but activity is low,” the source added. “… I don’t think buyers are persuaded of new price hikes from mills — it’s not certain for the moment.”

The same source said it was unclear about whether the market would soon strike a balance between supply and demand amid still-sluggish automotive demand.

Platts assessed North European HRC prices down Eur2.50 at Eur922.5/mt ex-works Ruhr, and in Southern Europe, prices remained stable at Eur835/mt ex-works Italy Jan 13.

— Catherine Brown

Klöckner eyes net zero emissions by 2040

Klöckner & Co plans to reduce directly controllable emissions to net zero by 2040, Kallanish learns from the German-based steel distribution group. Emissions that it can only control indirectly – primarily from bought-in steel products – are to be cut to net zero by 2050.

The company signed up in 2020 to the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi) “Business Ambition for 1.5°”. The SBTi has now validated the near-term carbon reduction targets adopted by Klöckner as science-based targets.

With those targets, Klöckner says it will achieve by 2030 a 50% reduction in its scope 1 and 2 emissions, meaning emissions associated with the business itself, such as from company-owned vehicles and purchased energy. In Scope 3, the company will likewise reduce directly controllable emissions, such as from business travel, by 50% by 2030. Non-directly-controllable emissions, for example from bought-in products and services, will be cut by 30% by 2030. These near-term targets are in line with the Paris Climate Agreement, the firm says.

In Scope 1 and 2 alone, the company expects to save some 90,000 tonnes/year of carbon from its own emissions. The package of measures to this end has been titled “kloeckner takes action 2040”. Activities include further centralisation of energy procurement and a progressive switch to renewable energy sources. The group has also begun converting its car and truck fleet to innovative means of propulsion, including electric mobility and hydrogen.
 
In October, Klöckner was the first steel distributor to enter into partnership with the Swedish start-up H2 Green Steel (H2GS) to secure access to virtually carbon-emission-free steel (see Kallanish 7 October).

Christian Koehl Germany

Tenova tests hydrogen for steelmaking decarbonisation

Italian energy infrastructure operator Snam is teaming up with technology maker Tenova to decarbonise the steel production process using green hydrogen. The companies will collaborate to test Tenova’s solution fed by green hydrogen at steelmaker’s sites.

“The aim is to bring integrated, turnkey commercial solutions tested at industrial plants to implement a substantial reduction of CO2 and NOx emissions in the metals production process – from melting to processing of half-processed products,” Tenova says in a note. It adds it will contribute its experience in combustion systems for reheating and heating treatment, and in electric arc furnaces. Tenova’s combustion systems can function with either a blend of natural gas and hydrogen or with to 100% hydrogen, Kallanish notes.

Snam will share its hydrogen transport and technology know-how overseeing the integration of Tenova’s solutions across the hydrogen value chain. At the Italian equipment maker’s headquarters in Varese, the two firms will perform tests applying hydrogen solutions to steel production.

Natalia Capra France