Celsa prepares for temporary layoffs but production continues

Spanish-headquartered longs supplier, Celsa, has announced to its trade unions its intention to launch a temporary layoff scheme for part of the workforce, Kallanish learns from market sources.

The company is expected to use the scheme to reduce output, but its furnaces and production lines in the group’s main mill, near Barcelona, will continue to operate. Unions note that the biggest issue is the supply of scrap for the EAFs, which is expected to be reduced in the coming weeks.

With the exception of Italy, Spain is the country in Europe most impacted by the coronavirus outbreak. The country had gone into lockdown since last week, but a number of steelmakers are continuing to produce, albeit at a reduced rate.

Earlier last week some companies such as Tubos Reunidos and Sidenor halted production temporarily. Acerinox on the other hand is confirming that production will continue for the time being.