(Alliance News) - Evraz PLC on Friday reported increased steel production in the fourth quarter of 2020 after completing repairs and with improved North America volumes, though with a slight decline for the year as a whole.
Total crude steel production for the three months ended December 31 was 3.5 million tonnes, up 9.4% from from 3.2 million tonnes in the third quarter of the year.
Evraz attributed this mostly to "higher production volumes at Evraz NTMK following the completion of scheduled capital repairs during [third quarter] 2020, as well as improved production volumes at Evraz North America, which grew by 26.6% [quarter-on-quarter]."
Total sales of steel productions in the fourth quarter rose even more sharply, up 13%, to 3.4 million tonnes from 3.0 million tonnes in the third quarter thanks to higher sales of semi-finished products as export market recovered, combined with weaker demand for finished construction projects in Russia as a result of "seasonal factors".
Quarterly total coking coal concentrate production rose to 4.1 million tonnes from 3.9 million, though total raw coking coal products sales were 20% lower at 2.8 million versus 3.5 million tonnes in the preceding quarter.
This drop was the result of "a deficit of GZh grade coal amid longwall move at the Uskovskaya mine" combined with higher second and third quarter sales amid stockpile utilisation.
Quarter-on-quarter external sales of iron ore products dropped to 445,000 tonnes from 486,000 tonnes as Evraz NTMK consumed more pellets after the launch of blast furnace no 6 in the third quarter.
Vanadium final product sales jumped to 4.3 million tonnes from 2.8 million thanks to increased steel utilisation rates thanks to higher ferrovanadium demand from the automotive industry plus higher oxide and ferrovanadium sales to China.
For 2020 as a whole, total crude steel production was 1.4% lower at 13.6 million tonnes from 13.8 million tonnes the year before. Total sales of steel productions dropped to 13.1 million tonnes from 13.5 million tonnes.
Annual coking coal concentrate production amounted to 15.5 million tonnes, down from 15.9 million tonnes.
Iron ore products sales rose to 1.7 million tonnes in 2020 from 1.1 million in 2019 while sales of vanadium final products dropped to 12.6 million tom 12.9 million.
Shares in Evraz were down 0.4% at 500.20 pence in London on Friday morning.
By Anna Farley; annafarley@alliancenews.com
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Evraz (EVR)