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U.S. Steel To Shut Down Alabama Blast Furnace, Finishing Operations
08/17/2015 - United States Steel Corp. intends to shut down -- permanently -- the blast furnace and halt most of the finishing operations at its Fairfield Works in Alabama on account of the new electric arc furnace being installed there, the Pittsburgh-based company has announced.
"We have made some difficult decisions over the last year as part of our portfolio optimization," said Mario Longhi, U. S. Steel president and CEO, in a statement. "We have determined that the permanent shut-down of the Fairfield Works blast furnace, steelmaking and most of the finishing operations is necessary to improve the overall efficiency and cost structure of our flat-rolled segment."
In July, the integrated steelmaker announced plans to idle the furnace by this month. Now, the company said, the idling will become permanent. Additionally, it said it plans to close Fairfield’s hot strip mill, pickle line, cold rolled mill, annealing facility and a stretch-and-temper line by Nov. 17.
As a result, roughly 1,100 of the 1,500 workers at the plant are to be laid off, U.S. Steel spokeswoman Courtney Boone told the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review newspaper.
Boone told the newspaper that the blast furnace shutdown was an eventuality, considering the $230 million EAF project. But, she said, a date had not been announced, at least not until now.
She said the EAF, which is to be put into operation in 2016, does not fully replace the blast furnace's capacity. However, the EAF can be powered up or down more quickly to better match production demand, the newspaper reported.
The plant's slab and rounds casters, the No. 5 coating line, as well as the Double G hot-dip galvanizing joint venture in Jackson, Miss., would continue to operate. Fairfield Tubular also is unaffected, U.S. Steel said.
U.S. Steel said it made the decision after a "careful market analysis of the company's current and long-term global operational footprint competitiveness."
The news comes in the midst of contract negotiations with the United Steelworkers union. The two sides are trying to put together a deal before a Sept. 1 deadline.
"While the USW has been aware of the impending shutdown, today’s notice brings tough news to many families, and it is a sad day in Birmingham for our members and the community," said USW International Vice President Tom Conway in a statement. Conway is chairman of the union's U.S. Steel bargaining committee.
"The USW will continue to work to salvage every possible job at the facility and to insure that our members are treated with the dignity and respect they have earned and deserve during this difficult time," he said.
USW International President Leo W. Gerard said that the decision to shut down the furnace months before the EAF has been put into service is, without a doubt, the result of unfairly traded imports.
"In particular, China has repeatedly violated international trade rules to bolster its state-owned industry while dumping its products into our market, and American workers have already paid the price," he said in a statement.
"When will Congress wake up and stop the erosion of our jobs due to subsidies, currency manipulation and other unfair and illegal practices by our trade partners?"
In July, the integrated steelmaker announced plans to idle the furnace by this month. Now, the company said, the idling will become permanent. Additionally, it said it plans to close Fairfield’s hot strip mill, pickle line, cold rolled mill, annealing facility and a stretch-and-temper line by Nov. 17.
As a result, roughly 1,100 of the 1,500 workers at the plant are to be laid off, U.S. Steel spokeswoman Courtney Boone told the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review newspaper.
Boone told the newspaper that the blast furnace shutdown was an eventuality, considering the $230 million EAF project. But, she said, a date had not been announced, at least not until now.
She said the EAF, which is to be put into operation in 2016, does not fully replace the blast furnace's capacity. However, the EAF can be powered up or down more quickly to better match production demand, the newspaper reported.
The plant's slab and rounds casters, the No. 5 coating line, as well as the Double G hot-dip galvanizing joint venture in Jackson, Miss., would continue to operate. Fairfield Tubular also is unaffected, U.S. Steel said.
U.S. Steel said it made the decision after a "careful market analysis of the company's current and long-term global operational footprint competitiveness."
The news comes in the midst of contract negotiations with the United Steelworkers union. The two sides are trying to put together a deal before a Sept. 1 deadline.
"While the USW has been aware of the impending shutdown, today’s notice brings tough news to many families, and it is a sad day in Birmingham for our members and the community," said USW International Vice President Tom Conway in a statement. Conway is chairman of the union's U.S. Steel bargaining committee.
"The USW will continue to work to salvage every possible job at the facility and to insure that our members are treated with the dignity and respect they have earned and deserve during this difficult time," he said.
USW International President Leo W. Gerard said that the decision to shut down the furnace months before the EAF has been put into service is, without a doubt, the result of unfairly traded imports.
"In particular, China has repeatedly violated international trade rules to bolster its state-owned industry while dumping its products into our market, and American workers have already paid the price," he said in a statement.
"When will Congress wake up and stop the erosion of our jobs due to subsidies, currency manipulation and other unfair and illegal practices by our trade partners?"
