US Steel Kosice considers blast furnace stoppage on weak demand – sources

Slovakia-based flat steel producer US Steel Kosice (USSK) is considering halting one of its blast furnaces due to slow demand for steel across Europe, sources told Fastmarkets on Tuesday May 23. “[USSK] has yet to decide on a timeline, but the option [of stopping one blast-furnace] is on the table,” a source told Fastmarkets.

USSK has three blast furnaces with a combined capacity of 5 million tpy of pig iron. The steelmaker produces hot-rolled, cold-rolled and hot-dipped galvanized coil.

Since January 2023, the company has been running all three furnaces, but demand for flat steel in Europe has recently been deteriorating, with buyers holding back in the hope of a decline in prices.

When contacted by Fastmarkets, however, USSK said “we do not comment on speculation.”

Published by: Julia Bolotova