AMSA long-steel extension to boost economy, Manufacturing Circle's Rodseth says
ArcelorMittal South Africa's (AMSA's) decision to continue operating its long-steel unit has given the country an opportunity to re-energize local manufacturing, Manufacturing Circle executive director Philippa Rodseth said.
Still, this “vital window of opportunity” to stimulate the demand side of the economy and support about 270,000 jobs needs to be supported by industry, government and labor, Rodseth said in an opinion piece published in the Business Day newspaper Wednesday.
“This can be achieved if our factories’ fixed costs are absorbed over greater levels of volume, which, in turn, will allow us to be competitive in export markets,” she said. “Should we get this right, we will have a reinvigorated, capacitated steel value chain that is able to compete internationally.”
AMSA in February said it will delay shutting its business that makes long- steel products and cutting as many as 3 500 jobs by six months after consulting with the government and the nation’s freight company.
The firm in November said that slumping steel consumption — a proxy for the economy — coupled with South Africa’s failing power and transport systems had prompted it to stop manufacturing long-steel products, which are primarily used in construction.
Separately, AMSA stands to benefit from a recently imposed 9% duty on imports of hot-rolled steel products, which are used on railroad tracks and construction projects, Business Day newspaper reported earlier.
Comments
Research Reports
Projects
Latest Multimedia
Showroom
ISO-certified Condra manufactures overhead cranes, portal cranes, cantilever cranes and crane components: hoists, drives, end-carriages, brakes and...
VISIT SHOWROOM
The SAIMM started as a learned society in 1894 after the invention of the cyanide process that saved the South African gold mining industry of the...
VISIT SHOWROOM
Announcements
What's On
Subscribe to improve your user experience...
Option 1 (equivalent of R125 a month):
Receive a weekly copy of Creamer Media's Engineering News & Mining Weekly magazine
(print copy for those in South Africa and e-magazine for those outside of South Africa)
Receive daily email newsletters
Access to full search results
Access archive of magazine back copies
Access to Projects in Progress
Access to ONE Research Report of your choice in PDF format
Option 2 (equivalent of R375 a month):
All benefits from Option 1
PLUS
Access to Creamer Media's Research Channel Africa for ALL Research Reports, in PDF format, on various industrial and mining sectors
including Electricity; Water; Energy Transition; Hydrogen; Roads, Rail and Ports; Coal; Gold; Platinum; Battery Metals; etc.
Already a subscriber?
Forgotten your password?
Receive weekly copy of Creamer Media's Engineering News & Mining Weekly magazine (print copy for those in South Africa and e-magazine for those outside of South Africa)
➕
Recieve daily email newsletters
➕
Access to full search results
➕
Access archive of magazine back copies
➕
Access to Projects in Progress
➕
Access to ONE Research Report of your choice in PDF format
RESEARCH CHANNEL AFRICA
R4500 (equivalent of R375 a month)
SUBSCRIBEAll benefits from Option 1
➕
Access to Creamer Media's Research Channel Africa for ALL Research Reports on various industrial and mining sectors, in PDF format, including on:
Electricity
➕
Water
➕
Energy Transition
➕
Hydrogen
➕
Roads, Rail and Ports
➕
Coal
➕
Gold
➕
Platinum
➕
Battery Metals
➕
etc.
Receive all benefits from Option 1 or Option 2 delivered to numerous people at your company
➕
Multiple User names and Passwords for simultaneous log-ins
➕
Intranet integration access to all in your organisation
