China: Operations at more blast furnaces in Tangshan impacted amidst COVID

More blast-furnace steel producers in Tangshan, China's top steel production city, are suffering shortages of raw materials and auxiliary materials due to ongoing traffic controls imposed by the city government to contain the spread of COVID as more communities across northern China report new positive cases.

Mysteel's tracking has found that as of March 24, a total of seven blast furnaces (BFs) across Tangshan had been hot-idled, culminating in the loss of some 29,500 tonnes/day of molten iron output. Just days before as of late March 21, only two blast furnaces had been banked, as reported.

The survey also found that disruptions to truck transportation - as drivers are forced into quarantine or subjected to exhaustive health document checks - had resulted in daily discharge rates for iron ore at some local ports declining markedly. Survey respondents also warned that if supplies of all raw materials including coal, coke, limestone and ferroalloys via truck to local mills continue to be affected, more mills will be forced to reduce BF operations.

According to Mysteel's latest data, the average daily iron ore discharge rates at Caofeidian and Jingtang ports - the two major conduits in Tangshan for seaborne iron ore - had declined to 145,000 tonnes/day and 159,000 t/d respectively over March 18-24, lower by 37% and 35% on week.

Official statistics show that Tangshan's steelmakers host over 126 blast furnaces which contributed to 13% of the country's total pig iron output or 113.8 million tonnes in 2021.

By Friday, Tangshan authorities were still rigorously adhering to Beijing's "dynamic-zero" COVID-19 containment strategy. On March 24 alone, the city reported 59 new asymptomatic infections, Health Commission of Hebei province reported.

"So far, some sintering and pelletizing operations have been temporarily halted due to the reduction in raw materials deliveries via truck, even though we can still receive some iron ore delivered via rail," an official with a local steelmaker remarked. "But we are maintaining our blast furnace operations as much as we can, as we still have some sintered ore in stocks," he added.

For now, only those local mills with rather low or no raw materials stocks have started to reduce their BF production, the official suggested. "In fact, from Thursday the local government has allowed key industrial enterprises to apply for vehicle passes enabling trucks to enter cordoned-off areas to ensure their normal operation," he said. "Though by this morning (Friday), we still hadn't received approval for passes, we hope that we can resume our truck transportation as much as possible in the coming few days."

By Friday, the official had been camped at his steelworks and unable to return home for a week. "Our management believes that letting staff stay in the plant is the best way to ensure that all operations stay smooth," he said.

Moreover, by Friday, steelmakers in other areas across China besides Tangshan were also being affected by reduced raw materials deliveries, Mysteel Global also observed.

Written by Victoria Zou, zyongjia@mysteel.com

This article has been published under an article exchange agreement between Mysteel Global and SteelMint.