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Large Turkish steelmaker Ekinciler Demir Celik has restarted production of long steel products after being interrupted by the Feb. 6 earthquakes. Ekinciler has a capacity of 1.25 million tons of liquid steel and produces billet and rebar from 8-50 mm.
Most steel mills operating in Turkey’s earthquake-hit southeastern region have recently resumed production.
Isdemir, Turkey’s largest steel mill with a basic oxygen furnace, is also expected to return to production in the next few days, resolving some domestic availability issues.
The region produces about one-third of Turkey’s annual steel output.
The Turkish Housing Development Administration plans to build 350,000 houses in 11 cities within a year, which will require 5 million tons of steel products, including 3 million tons of rebar, 750,000 tons of wire rod and 1.25 million tons of sheet metal.
The Turkish Steel Producers Association stated earlier that this need could be met if steel mills prioritized the domestic market.
Producers agreed not to raise rebar prices except for fluctuations in raw material prices.
Demand for rebar for reconstruction projects, however, has increased the prices of imported billets and scrap in recent weeks. LME Turkey steel rebar prices on March 9 were up 0.68 percent from the previous day, returning to the 710 euros/mt area.
LME Turkey Steel Rebar FOB euro/ton
The LME Steel Scrap TSI HMS 80:20 CFR – Turkey stood at 439 euros/mt on March 9, up 0.66 percent from the previous day’s reading, and up 13.73 percent from prices on Feb. 6.
LME Steel Scrap TSI HMS 80:20 CFR – Turkey euro/ton
Turkey’s FOB billet were up 7.65 percent (708 euros/mt) on March 3 from the previous week, up 18 percent from the first days of February.
Turkey’s FOB billet euro/ton
