Ispat Inland Inc. and the United Steelworkers of America have agreed to extend their collective-bargaining agreements until midnight Aug. 15. Labor contracts covering workers at three Ispat Inland locations were to expire this Saturday, July 31.

"Our existing agreements provide for binding interest arbitration in the event of unresolved issues, with no interruption in operations," said Louis L. Schorsch, company President and CEO. "However, we would prefer to reach a negotiated settlement, and I remain encouraged that we will do so."

Talks were suspended July 15 as the parties wrestled with complex issues associated with applying the pattern that was set by the Steelworkers and competing steelmakers to the specifics of Ispat Inland's situation.

William P. Boehler, Director of Industrial Relations for Ispat Inland, said company and union leaders are in the process of planning the details for their return to the bargaining table. "We have had a good exchange of proposals during the first five weeks of bargaining, and we look forward to resuming discussions of the many issues that comprise the new industry pattern," Boehler said.

Ispat Inland's Indiana Harbor Works in East Chicago, Ind., is affected by the negotiations, as are Ispat Inland Mining Co. in Virginia, Minn., which mines and processes iron ore for the Harbor Works; and the I/N Tek and I/N Kote joint ventures with Nippon Steel Corp. in New Carlisle, Ind.

Ispat Inland Inc. is a subsidiary of Ispat International NV, one of the leading steel companies in the world, with steelmaking facilities in six countries and shipments of 15.2 million tons in 2003. Ispat Inland manufactures a broad range of semifinished and finished flat and bar steel products. In addition to Ispat Inland in East Chicago, Ind., USA, Ispat International has major steelmaking facilities in Canada, Mexico, Trinidad, France and Germany.

Ispat International is a member of the LNM Group, the world's second-largest and most global steel group, which also operates in Algeria, Czech Republic, Indonesia, Kazakhstan, Poland, Romania and South Africa.