Evraz: Crude Steel Output Mostly Flat in Q2

Although demand remained high in North America throughout the quarter amid a rapid economic recovery from the pandemic, fewer imports and relatively low levels of distributor inventory impacted overall sales in the region.

The steelmaker’s crude steel production totaled 3.368 million metric tons in Q2, down 1.3% from the previous quarter. North American production was 12.3% of total output or 415,000 metric tons in the second quarter, down 15.8% from the prior quarter.

Unplanned outages in both the U.S. and Canada caused the nearly 16% decrease quarter on quarter in Q2. A seven-day unplanned outage in May at the minimill in Regina, Saskatchewan, caused Canadian operations’ output to fall by 4.7% in Q2 when compared to the previous quarter. U.S.-based production decreased 29.1% in the second quarter versus Q1 due to a steam explosion and unplanned outage in May at the company’s Pueblo, Colo., mill.

Sales across segments varied in North America. Construction products jumped by 24.0% in Q2 due to pent-up demand, and price growth outpacing those for raw materials. Railway, flat-rolled, and tubular products all saw decreased sales during the second quarter due to the unplanned outages and, in some cases, weaker than expected demand. Railway products decreased by 16.6%, flat-rolled fell by 14.5%, and tubular was down by 10.1% quarter on quarter, the company said.

The decline in large-diameter pipe shipments was partially offset by increased OCTG and line pipe sales that were more than double the previous quarter. Sales improvement driven by rapidly growing energy demand allowed the company to restart all its OCTG facilities that had been idled since Q2 2020.

Average selling price per ton rose across segments in the second quarter, lead by flat-rolled products, which jumped by 38.7% in Q2 to $1,205 per metric ton. Construction products rose by 9.0% to $900 per metric ton, while tubular prices edged up by 1.2% to $1,513 per metric ton.

Evraz is a global steel and mining company based in Russia. Evraz North America has six production sites located in the United States (Portland, Ore.; Pueblo, Colo.) and Canada (Regina, Saskatchewan; Calgary, Camrose and Red Deer, Alberta). It is a major producer of plate, rail, pipe and OCTG products.

By David Schollaert, David@SteelMarketUpdate.com