Gerdau has commenced production at its heavy plate rolling mill located at its Ouro Branco mill, in the city of same name in the state of Minas Gerais, a media report said.
The start-up takes place as local steelmakers face a scenario of a weak domestic demand for most steel products, including flats.
Gerdau said the rolling mill has “potential” to produce up to 1.1 million mt in the future, meeting the needs of both the domestic and the export markets.
In a conference call with analysts late last year, Gerdau’s CEO, André Gerdau Johannpeter, commented the project the rolling mill would “still be in the initial phase of the learning curve.”
“We will then be better prepared to supply the market after, maybe, 2018,” the executive explained at the time, adding he expects a “some rebound” of the local steel market only “by then”.
A media report noted that domestic consumption of heavy plates in Brazil totaled 1 million mt in 2015 and is expected to be close to 500,000 mt in 2016.
Citing data from Brazil’s steel distributors association, Inda, newspaper Valor said domestic demand for heavy plate in H1 was 268,000 mt.