Poland reduced steel production by 10.1% y/y in February

In February 2024, steel companies in Poland reduced steel production by 10.1% compared to the same month in 2023, to 550 thousand tons. Thus, the country was ranked 22nd in the global ranking of steel-producing countries (71) by the WorldSteel Association.

In February 2024, Polish steelmakers reduced steel production by 6.8% compared to January.

In January-February, Poland reduced steel production by 3.8% compared to the same period in 2023, to 1.14 million tons.

Overall, steel production in the European Union in January-February 2024 decreased by 0.9% compared to January-February 2023 – to 21.1 million tons. Global steel production for 2 months amounted to 306.9 million tons, up 3% y/y.

As GMK Center reported earlier, in 2023, Poland reduced steel production by 13.1% compared to 2022, to 6.44 million tons. Last year, the average monthly steel production in Poland amounted to 536.42 thousand tons, while in 2022 the figure was 617.25 thousand tons (-13.09% y/y).

There are 6 steel enterprises in Poland, including ArcelorMittal Warszawa (capacity of 0.75 million tons of steel per year), Celsa Huta Ostrowiec (0, 9 million tons per year), Liberty Czestochowa (0.84 million tons per year), CMC Zawiercie (1.7 million tons per year), ArcelorMittal Dąbrowa Górnicza (5 million tons per year), and Ferrostal Labedy Gliwice (0.5 million tons per year).

The total steel production capacity of the plants reaches 9.69 million tons per year. Thus, in 2023, capacity utilization was 66.4%.

The decline in steel production last year was due to the weak market conditions that have been observed since the fall of 2022. The European steel industry is facing high production costs at a time when demand for domestic steel products is weak amid a flood of cheaper imported products. In the autumn and winter, many companies limit their capacity to balance supply and demand and stabilize product prices.