HBIS Serbia restarts BF, plans summer maintenance: reports

HBIS Group Serbia Iron & Steel will resume operations this week at its idled blast furnace, according to media reports. It plans to ramp up production to full capacity this month.

HBIS Serbia did not reply to Kallanish’s request for comment before deadline.

According to reports, the enterprise will operate both blast furnaces, but will suspend one BF in summer for maintenance.

The firm idled blast furnace No.1 at its Smederevo works last July due to low global demand for steel products (see Kallanish passim), saying the unit would be restarted once conditions improve.

The plant in Smederevo can produce about 2.2 million tonnes/year of steel with its two furnaces, while No.1 alone has a capacity of about 900,000 t/y. Product range comprises hot and cold rolled coil, pickled coil and electrolytic tinplate.

HBIS Serbia’s production in January-September 2022 amounted to 901,000t (see Kallanish passim).

The company’s exports to the EU market during the first seven months of 2022, meanwhile, were 397,000t, up by 3.9% on-year.

Serbia’s production of crude steel totalled 100,200t in January, down by 7.4% on-year, according to the latest worldsteel data. In 2022, the country’s output was 1.67 million tonnes, up by 0.3% on-year.

Svetoslav Abrossimov Bulgaria