<article><p class="lead">ArcelorMittal is facing the spread of Covid-19 among at least two of its steel mills.</p><p>At ArcelorMittal's Burns Harbor flat-rolled mill in Indiana, a coronavirus outbreak has impacted production, according to multiple market sources. </p><p>At ArcelorMittal's Cleveland, Ohio, mill, another "large outbreak" was taking place at that facility, according to a text message from the local United Steelworkers Union (USW) Local 979. </p><p>The Cleveland mill has one of its two blast furnaces operating, while the other was <a href="https://metals.argusmedia.com/newsandanalysis/article/2094039">idled back in April</a>. The union has lobbied to have the idled blast furnace restarted. </p><p>The company said while it has seen an increase in coronavirus cases at some of its facilities, the increases track with rising community case counts around those operations. </p><p>In Indiana, the seven-day moving average of new cases for 22 November was 6,334, more than triple the 2,034 the state recorded a month ago, according to the state's government. In Ohio, daily case counts have more than tripled in the last month, according to government data.</p><p>The potential issues at ArcelorMittal come as the US steel supply has been unable to keep up with surging demand, with many buyers experiencing delayed shipments and extended lead times. </p><p>The <i>Argus</i> hot-rolled coil (HRC) assessment in the US is at $735/short ton (st), a jump of 63pc since mid-August, when it hit $450/st, the lowest level for the year.</p><p>US steel producers have been marked as essential businesses through the pandemic, and most appear to have escaped widespread outbreaks since the pandemic began in earnest in the US in March. </p><p>Integrated steelmaker Cleveland-Cliffs is in the process of buying the majority of ArcelorMittal's steelmaking operations in the US, including Indiana Harbor and Cleveland, in a deal that it is expected to complete by the end of the year. </p><p class="bylines">By Rye Druzin</p></article>
