According to Chile’s press, Compañia de Aceros del Pacífico (CAP) is considering the acceptance of a strategic partner for its subsidiary steel producer Siderúrgica Huachipato.
Nicolás Burr, CEO of CAP, said, “We are not excluding any alternative, and among these, it is obvious that if there is a strategic partner that could give us a contribution, we are open for conversations.”
Burr mentioned that, among different alternatives for Huachipato, the focus now is maintaining its operations, in his view, possible only in an environment of fair competition with imports.
That was a reference to imports of Chinese rebar and grinding mill balls, which had recently their import tax established at 15 percent, while CAP requires import tax of 25 percent for rebars and 33 percent for the grinding mill balls.
Meanwhile, a group of Huachipato workers and union leaders, under the coordination of Henry Campos, the mayor of Talcahuano, where Huachipato is located, has arrived at Palacio de La Moneda, the country’s presidential palace, in an effort to have the implementation of the required import taxes.
Campos reportedly told Chile’s president Gabriel Boric that if Huachipato stops operations, many other companies will do the same, resulting in a loss of 22,000 jobs.