Overview
- Operations restarted on February 2 with an annual capacity of 160,000 tonnes following a shutdown that began in May 2024.
- Production is directed to the domestic market with an emphasis on customers in Brazil’s North and Northeast regions.
- New steelmaking equipment enables a shift from 6-meter to 12-meter billets, which company leadership says boosts productivity and reduces costs.
- Federal trade authorities recently set a five-year antidumping duty on pre-painted steel from China and India and raised import tariffs to 25% on nine steel categories for 12 months.
- Ceará’s governor and Maracanaú’s mayor endorsed the restart and urged buyers to favor Brazilian steel to support local industry and jobs.