Cleveland-Cliffs idling AK's Michigan hot-strip mill: Sources

Houston — Cleveland-Cliffs is indefinitely idling AK Steel's Dearborn, Michigan, hot-strip mill, effective immediately, according to multiple market sources Wednesday.

Two separate customers were notified by contacts at the steelmaker saying the Dearborn hot-strip mill was set to be idled immediately and "it's not coming back up," according to a customer's notification.

The Dearborn Works' HS mill has a rated annual capacity of 3.6 million short tons, according to Association for Iron and Steel Technology data.

AK Steel appears set to move Dearborn's slab rolling to its Middletown, Ohio mill, according to the sources. AK-Middletown has a 5.4 million st/year hot-strip mill.

The blast furnace, tandem mill and coating lines will still run at Dearborn, according to one of the sources. However, the steelmaker is set to cast slabs in Dearborn and ship the slabs by rail to Middletown for rolling.

In addition, the second source received a notification that existing orders would be transferred to Middletown.

A service center source said the steelmaker was in the process of bringing back its shipping department and galvanizing line personnel at the Dearborn mill, according to his conversation earlier in the week with someone at the mill.

A fourth market source also confirmed the idling of the hot-strip mill.

The Dearborn, Michigan, sheet mill temporarily took down its nearly 2 million st/year blast furnace more than a month ago as auto demand disappeared. There was no timeline for the idling's duration but the company said it was ready to bring it back online once the demand outlook improves.

"The anneal and temper operations at Dearborn are also being permanently idled," according to the first source.

The company could not be reached for comment by S&P Global Platts.