[Ferro-Alloys.com] Russian integrated steel producers NLMK, Severstal and MMK increased raw material production in 2020. But while consumption of their own material and external purchases rose, sales to third parties fell, contributing to global tightness in steelmaking raw materials.

 

NLMK's iron ore production rose by 0.5pc to 18.51mn t in 2020, after production in the fourth quarter rose by 20pc on the quarter and 9pc on the year, following the collapse of an ore transportation conveyor gallery, which caused an outage lasting for two weeks in September.

 

NLMK's external iron ore sales fell by 12pc on the quarter to 139,000t, while the company's crude steel production rose by 1pc over the same period.

 

The company's full-year coke production at subsidiary Altai-Koks rose by 6pc on the year to 3.27mn t, while coke production at NLMK's integrated site at Lipetsk was flat at 2.43mn t. Lipetsk supplies 40-45pc of its own coke, while the rest is delivered from Altai-Koks. sales from Altai-Koks to third parties fell by 3pc on the year in the fourth quarter to 775,000t, but full-year sales rose by 5pc in to 3.25mn t.

 

Severstal's full-year iron ore sales to third parties fell by 13pc on the year to 6.02mn t. Sales including internal deliveries rose by 4.4pc to 18mn t, driven by iron ore concentrate sales rising by 13pc on the year to 7.07mn t, as output grew at the Karelsky Okatysh plant and the Yakovlevskiy mine.

 

Coking coal concentrate sales from Vorkutaugol increased by 1pc on the year to 4.7mn t in 2020 — 281,000t of which was to third parties, a 31pc year-on-year fall.

 

MMK increased its coking coal concentrate production by 17pc on the year to 3.06mn t in 2020, driven by a beneficiation plant upgrade and the increased processing of purchased coals, while coking coal production fell by 9.5pc to 4.35mn t. Coking coal purchases rose by 85pc on the year to 477,000t in 2020. Iron ore production rose by 4.5pc to 2.893mn t over the same period.

 

Source: Argusmedia