MT ArcelorMittal

By Pierre Bertrand

ArcelorMittal said on Thursday that it is preparing to temporarily shut down one of two blast furnaces at its Fos-sur-Mer plant in the south of France.

The Luxembourg-based steel maker, citing the impact of energy prices and an increase in steel imports into Europe, said the plant is facing a slowdown in demand for steel adding that a furnace will be shut down as of December.

As part of the measures being introduced, ArcelorMittal said it will adapt working hours from the beginning of next month for some of the plant's employees up to a maximum of one day per week.

The company said that orders are down for the end of 2022 and beginning of 2023, amid what it called a strongly deteriorated macro-economic context.

"As soon as market conditions allow, we will relaunch a two-blast furnace operation at Fos," said Bruno Ribo, chief executive of ArcelorMittal Mediterranee.

Write to Pierre Bertrand at pierre.bertrand@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

November 03, 2022 11:20 ET (15:20 GMT)

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