• Skip to main content

    Market Segment

    November 29, 2022

    USS's Mon Valley No. 3 BF to Remain Idled Until Market Improves

    Written by David Schollaert

    US Steel Corp. will keep the No. 3 blast furnace at its Mon Valley Works near Pittsburgh idled until market dynamics improve, a company spokeswoman confirmed to SMU. US SteelThe blast furnace was originally taken offline on Aug. 30 for a month-long planned maintenance outage. The shotcrete (sprayed concrete) reline was completed on Saturday, Sept. 24. US Steel originally confirmed to SMU back in late September that, once the reline was completed, the blast furnace would remain idle. At that time, sources familiar with the matter told SMU the idling would be for a month or so in response to declining demand and market conditions. Downtime appears to have been extended with no set timetable for a restart. No. 3 has not been idled indefinitely. But the furnace will remain down as US Steel continues “to balance our production with our order book,” the spokeswoman said. In yesterday’s price hike letter, the Pittsburgh-based steelmaker said that it was raising its base pricing for all new flat-rolled product orders given that its order book for the balance of 2022 was complete. The spokeswoman added that the “planned maintenance on BF 3 was completed and the furnace is available for use.” There are no layoffs associated with the decision to keep the furnace offline, she noted. The Mon Valley Works has two blast furnaces: No. 1 and No. 3. The No. 1 furnace has a daily ironmaking capacity of approximately 3,200 tons. The No. 3 furnace has a daily capacity of approximately 2,900 tons. The furnaces are located at US Steel’s Edgar Thomson plant in Braddock, Pa. That facility makes slabs and rails them to the company’s Irvin Plant in West Mifflin, Pa., where they are rolled into sheet. By David Schollaert, David@SteelMarketUpdate.com  

    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.

    Read more from David Schollaert

    Latest in Market Segment

    US steel output falls 5.1% to lowest level since January: AISI

    Domestic raw steel production fell last week, dropping to the lowest output since January, according to the latest American Iron and Steel Institute (AISI) figures. The seesaw pattern continued for US production this past week, maintaining a trend seen for the past few months. Fluctuations have been so significant that in just the past two months, output has hit both a six-year high and a six-month low. And despite the week-to-week variations, output has mostly trended lower. Still, despite that overall decline, output to date in 2026 remains strong compared with recent years. AISI estimated total US raw steel mill output to be 1,774,000 short tons (st) in the week ending Oct. 24 (Figure 1). Production was 96,000 st (5.1%) below the prior week, driven by cuts in two of the five regions tracked by AISI.

    Worthington Steel hits stumbling block in Kloeckner transfer agreement

    Worthington Steel said it did not receive sufficient approval from shareholders of German service center Kloeckner & Co. for a proposed domination and profit and loss transfer agreement (DPLTA). Under German law, a DPLTA gives a parent company the right to issue binding instructions to the management of a subsidiary. Kloeckner held an extraordinary general meeting on Friday, Oct. 23, in Dusseldorf, during which a shareholder vote on the DPLTA took place. At least 75% of the capital represented at the meeting had to vote in favor of the DPLTA for the measure to pass.

    Higher N. American spreads lift BlueScope’s outlook

    Australia’s BlueScope has raised its earnings outlook for the first half of fiscal 2027, citing stronger-than-anticipated performance at its North Star BlueScope mill in Ohio and improved results across several other businesses. The Melbourne-based company said in earnings guidance on Monday that it expects its North American businesses to deliver earnings about two-thirds higher than in the second half of fiscal 2026. North Star is forecast to perform nearly three-quarters better than in that period, when it reported EBIT of AU$484 million (US$339.8 million). BlueScope attributed the North Star uplift primarily to stronger benchmark spreads.

    Wheeling-Nippon taps Caprarese for manufacturing VP

    Wheeling-Nippon Steel has appointed Matt Caprarese as vice president of manufacturing. His appointment was effective Oct. 14, the company said in a LinkedIn post. Caprarese most recently served as VP of engineering, HSSE, sustainability, and plant services at JSW Steel, overseeing operations in Mingo Junction, Ohio, and Baytown, Texas. He previously held positions at ArcelorMittal and United States Steel. “With a strong background in Maintenance, Environmental and plant services/utilities, Matt brings valuable industry knowledge and leadership experience to his new role,” the company said. “We look forward to Matt's leadership in strengthening our manufacturing operations, supporting operational excellence, and contributing to the continued success of Wheeling-Nippon Steel.”

    Nucor increases spot HR coil by $15/ton

    Nucor said on Monday, Oct. 26, that its consumer spot price (CSP) for hot-rolled (HR) coil will be $1,270 per short ton (st) this week, up $15/st from the prior week. The CSP for HR coil from California Steel Industries (CSI) on the West Coast will be $1,340/st, up $20/st from last week. Nucor continues to offer lead times of three to five weeks, according to its letter to customers. You can track mill price announcements on our website. Steel Market Update (SMU) published a weekly price assessment on Tuesday, Oct. 20, showing HR coil prices averaging $1,290/st, up $10/st from the previous week. We will update our prices on the evening of Tuesday, Oct. 27.