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    April 13, 2021

    Brazil’s Usiminas to Restart Idled Blast Furnace in Late Q2

    Written by David Schollaert

    Usinas Siderurgicas de Minas Gerais (Usiminas) is set to bring an idled blast furnace back online in June at their Ipatinga plant in Brazil’s southeastern state of Minas Gerais, according to Steel Market Update sources. Back in April 2020, Usiminas idled the #1 and #2 blast furnaces due to lower demand resulting from widespread closures and mitigation efforts to counter the spread of COVID-19.

    Usiminas, one of the largest flat steel producers in Latin America with an annual capacity of 9.5 million metric tons, originally brought their #1 blast furnace back online this past August, and recent intel confirms they are restarting their #2 blast furnace this coming June. Usiminas did not immediately respond or offer comment.

    David Schollaert

    David Schollaert is deputy editor-in-chief for Steel Market Update. David joined SMU after more than a decade in the metals and mining industry in a myriad of different roles. Much of his early experience and expertise were within the coverage and analysis of steel-making raw materials and served previously as senior editor of the CRU Prices Service. Most recently, however, before his return to market analysis, David held roles as a metals buyer and an operations manager for raw material suppliers. He can be contacted at david@steelmarketupdate.com or 724-720-1008.

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