Italian steel output down in February due to high energy costs

Steel production dropped again for the second month in a row in February in Italy, Europe’s second largest steel producer, as the sharp rise in energy costs weighed on volumes, latest data released by the country’s steel producer federation, Federacciai, showed.

Last month, crude steel production fell 2% year on year to 2.04 million mt, with major domestic steelmakers having to temporarily stop production for at least a week and work in on again/off again mode for few more days due to the high costs.

The production of long steel products dropped 0.2% in February to 1.18 million mt year on year, while flat production fell 1% to 888,000 mt, the data showed.

Around 80% of Italian production — equivalent to 24 million mt — is produced by electric arc furnaces. Energy is the second biggest cost for steel producers after scrap for the most electro-intensive producers, representing about 20% of steel mills’ costs.

— Annalisa Villa