Thyssenkrupp prepares customers for plate mill closure

Thyssenkrupp Steel is becoming more outspoken about the looming closure of its plate mill in Duisburg. Late in November, it sent a letter to its customers which many took as a declaration that its operation would cease by the end of thyssenkrupp’s fiscal year through September 2021.

Tk Steel’s press office did not quite confirm the nature of the message; a spokesman upon inquiry said that “…a possible closure is getting more and more likely as time runs out.” The company initially set itself the deadline of 31 December to find a buyer for the operation.

The tone of the letter seen by Kallanish, however, appears clearer. “Since we could not find a buyer to this date, we must assume that the plate mill will be closed by 30 September 2021 at the latest,” it reads. “There is no option of a successful development under the roof of thyssenkrupp.”

“We will have to reduce our volume of orders there because we cannot rely on it,” one stockholder’s buyer told Kallanish in October. “We are getting prepared that production will be discontinued,” he added. Another buyer of mostly high-end plate, stated that “…I hold little contact with thyssenkrupp these days because I don’t see a future,” although he deals with the higher-end grades thyssenkrupp makes.

Thyssenkrupp notes the hot strip cutting line in Antwerp will remain unaffected, and will continue operation.