Updates with confirmed MSC damage.
Iranian steelmakers Khouzestan Steel (KhSC) and Mobarakeh Steel (MSC) were hit by air strikes attributed to the US and Israel on Friday, with damage to storage and power infrastructure, officials said.
The attacks are expected to reduce Iran's billet and slab production and export capacity.
KhSC — Iran's second-largest steelmaker, with crude steel output of 4.2mn t last year — sustained hits to two storage silos, Khuzestan governorate security deputy Velayat Hayati said. Initial assessments indicate no impact at blast furnaces 1 and 2, which were off line at the time. The facility reported no casualties or injuries.
Esfahan-based MSC — which produced 7.1mn t of steel in 2025 — suffered damage to a substation, an alloy steel line and power units, according to on-site reports. Production checks are continuing, with potential short-term outages at some units, although full capacity details are pending expert evaluation. MSC confirmed late in the day that direct-reduction facilities and parts of its 914MW and 250MW power units in Esfahan were hit, with electricity supply to the steel plant likely to be affected.
The incidents follow a strike on Foolad Atieh (Asia Steel) on Thursday, which killed one person and injured two. No official production-loss figures were released, but market participants expect minor domestic billet and slab price changes.
An industry ministry spokesperson confirmed partial damage to the facility and operations are suspended for safety checks. "We are assessing damage, shipments are delayed," a source said.
Several steel producers in Iran face gas and power shortages as a result of recent attacks on the South Pars gas field.
Iran's semi-finished exports amounted to around 550,000 t/month in 2024, according to Worldsteel data — about twice the level reported under Iranian customs data for HS code 7207.
Iran is preparing retaliatory strikes on Gulf steel producers, according to Iran's Tasnim news agency, which is linked to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. Plants listed include Saudi Arabia's Hadeed, the UAE's Emsteel, Qatar Steel, Kuwait Steel, Bahrain Steel and Israel's Yehuda Steel.
