Africa's largest steel producer, ArcelorMittal South Africa, has announced its financial results for 2015, reporting a net loss of ZAR 8.6 billion ($548.1 million), compared to a net loss of ZAR 158 million in the previous year.
In 2015, the company's EBITDA amounted to ZAR 809 million ($51.36 million), decreasing from ZAR 1.25 billion in the previous year. ArcelorMittal South Africa's sales revenue last year decreased by 10.6 percent year on year to ZAR 31.14 billion ($834.23 million), following an eight percent increase in average net realized prices. The company's steel shipments in 2015 were down three percent, with export shipments declining by 12 percent, while local shipments increased one percent, all year on year.
In the given year, ArcelorMittal South Africa's overall liquid steel production was 4.84 million mt, 7.1 percent higher compared to the previous year, while capacity utilization for flat steel was lower at 75 percent compared to 85 percent in 2014, and long steel capacity utilization increased from 41 percent to 73 percent following the relining of the blast furnace in Newcastle during 2014.
The company stated that, although it expects higher production and sales volumes following the seasonal slowdown in the fourth quarter of 2015, it is expected that international steel prices will remain low for the first half of the year. The company said it would like to reemphasize that, without the requisite tariffs as applied for and without the initiatives promised by the government regarding the use of local steel for government infrastructure projects and the introduction of a fair pricing mechanism, the company and the steel industry will need to undertake significant structural changes.