Republic to Idle Some Operations in Ohio and NY State

“As a result of the consolidation, about 500 Republic Steel employees will be furloughed indefinitely,” Grupo Simec said in a press release on Thursday, Aug. 10.

“We’re facing an extremely challenging SBQ market in the US, with competitive market pricing and decreased demand,” Jaime Vigil, Republic Steel board member and executive advisor, said in the release. “At the same time, we’ve had to deal with increasing input costs on all raw materials, consumables, and labor, all as a result of the inflationary environment in the US over the past year.”

Vigil noted there was hope inflationary pressures would ease, and that Republic would benefit from the Infrastructure Bill in 2021 and the Inflation Reduction Act in 2022. Unfortunately, he said, neither happened in a timely manner.

Republic and Grupo Simec are the only producers of leaded steel in North America, according to the release. Grupo Simec said National Ambient Air Quality Standards “proved to be too challenging” for Republic, which has facilities up to 125 years old. As a result, the company said it would be “most environmentally responsible” to continue at its new mill in Tlaxcala.

“This isn’t an easy decision,” Vigil said. “But we feel it’s the only way for us to continue to serve our US customer base with an ongoing and reliable supply of product, including leaded steel, and to do so at a competitive price point.”

Republic, based in Canton, Ohio, is a supplier of SBQ. Its products include hot-rolled steel bars, cold-finished steel bars, cold-heading quality rod and wire, and leaded steel bars.

The company operates steelmaking centers that produce steel bars in Canton, and value-added rolling and finishing facilities in Canton, Lorain and Massillon, Ohio; Lackawanna, N.Y.; Gary, Ind.; and Hamilton, Ontario, according to it website.

 Grupo Simec acquired Repbulic in 2005.