WCA November 2017

From the Americas

He recommends long-arc operation – using higher voltages and lower currents to reduce wear on electrodes. As always, care should be exercised when applying electrodes to prevent socket breaks and cracking. “It’s also important to pay close attention to the scrap mix,” Mr Bell said, since electrodes are the workhorses that melt the cold scrap. “You want a scrap mix that reduces oxidation, which in turn will help prevent electrodes from breaking.” Elsewhere in steel…  “Fifteen industry groups are warning President Donald Trump that a proposal to curb steel imports would harm national security, the economy, and the US steel industry.” The reference by Len Boselovic of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette was to a 7 th September letter advising Mr Trump that import restrictions would result in critical raw materials shortages because many types of steel products are not available from USA sources. (“Not So Fast: Curbs on Steel Imports Would Harm Economy, Industry Leaders Tell White House,” 12 th September) The writers included gear, fastener and can producers, as well as steel fabricators and forgers. The industry groups said that, taken together, they employ more than a million workers, as compared with the 81,900 employed in the USA basic steel industry. The intense lobbying stems from a White House investigation into whether steel imports threaten national security. Mr Trump ordered the probe in April after receiving a letter from USA steelmakers urging him to curb imports on grounds that subsidised foreign competitors are “undermining the viability of the US steel industry.”  As reported by Gregory Meyer in the Financial Times (12 th September), Minneapolis-based Cargill has agreed to sell its eight steel fabrication centres in states from Florida to Colorado to Metal One of Japan. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. Metal One, a venture of the Mitsubishi and Sojitz companies, already has extensive capabilities in steel distribution throughout the USA. CEO Shuichi Iwata said: “This acquisition will be a great strategic fit with our current asset base in North America.” Cargill, the largest privately held corporation in the USA in terms of revenue, is a trading company that spans many industries. In 2016 it gave up steel production with the sale of its stake in Ohio-based North Star BlueScope Steel. David Dines, president of Cargill Metals & Shipping, said the company would continue to be active in global ferrous metals markets through its business in the Asia Pacific region.

Steel A crisis in electrode supply is averted, but a shortage is still a worry point for USA electric arc furnace (EAF) steelmakers When Hurricane Harvey was bearing down on the Gulf Coast of Texas in late summer, the USA petroleum industry was not alone in its anxiety. The steel industry had a particular worry of its own: that closings or stepdowns at oil refineries would occasion a shortage of needle coke, a key feedstock for manufacturing graphite electrodes and essential to the operation of the nation’s steel mini-mills. As it happens, the erratic course of the storm largely spared the refineries; and afterwards Phil Bell, president of the Washington-based Steel Manufacturers Association (SMA), told S&P Global Platts that his organisation saw “no evidence of reduced output” by domestic electric arc furnace (EAF) steelmakers. (“No Reduced US Output Yet from Steel EAFs Due to Electrode Crunch: SMA,” 14 th September) The “yet” in the Platts headline is significant, however. Mr Bell also disclosed that current volatility in the electrode market is being closely monitored by the SMA and by such members as the scrap-melting steel producers Nucor, Steel Dynamics, Gerdau and Commercial Metals. “It’s something that has been on our radar since March or April of this year,” Mr Bell told Joe Innace of Platts , when the SMA members first noticed a dramatic uptick in electrode pricing, a supply squeeze, and problems with deliveries. He noted that China has “taken serious steps” to curb pollution, and needle coke production was curtailed as a result. While the effects of the Hurricane Harvey outages were negligible, in Mr Bell’s view they did serve to “amplify the Chinese situation.” Electrodes priced ‘way above’ the norm Mr Innace reported that Mr Bell discounts the contention by some in the industry that the electrode shortage could be deliberate and that China may be sending a warning about retaliation if the USA continues to clamp down aggressively on steel imports. “I’d hate to speculate that it’s a retaliatory event,” Mr Bell said. “I’ve heard that, but it’s not an official SMA position. However, I would not rule anything out.” Monitoring by Platts does indicate that Chinese spot electrode offers have surged above $30,000 per metric ton (mt) recently; this is “way above” contractual prices typically paid for 2017 accords, estimated at around $4,000-$7,000/ mt. According to American Iron and Steel Institute statistics, through July the USA produced 48.7 million short tons (st) of raw steel, with 32.1 million st – nearly 66 per cent of all USA output – melted in EAFs.  The SMA’s Mr Bell, whose experience includes work at steel mills and for the electrode maker SGL Carbon, had some advice for EAF operators on conservation.

BigStockPhoto.com Photographer: Aispl

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Wire & Cable ASIA – November/December 2017

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