ArcelorMittal Annaba, in Algeria, is set to produce over 1 million tonnes of crude steel in 2011. In 2010, the company produced just under 800,000 tonnes of crude steel; the plan for 2011 is to increase this by 25% to 30%.

This should consist of 500,000 tonnes of finished long products and approximately 400,000 tonnes of flats.

Mr Michel Cassou a senior executive of ArcelorMittal Annaba said “Our 2010 plan was similar, we were aiming to reach 1 million tonnes of crude steel. We fell short mainly because of labour problems at our production site. This year we hope the situation will be calmer.”

He said “The management is yet to decide whether to restart the coking plant, which was stopped at the end of 2009, during 2011. We are still studying the situation, but it’s not a priority. It shouldn't affect our crude production either way. The costs for reactivating the plant are important, therefore the decision should be taken carefully.”

In 2010 ArcelorMittal Annaba imported coke from other facilities in the group, mainly from Germany and Poland.

(Sourced from Arab Steel)