Türkiye Steel Plant Dynamics: Kardemir and Erdemir Respond to Market Changes

Kardemir and Oyak Mining Metallurgy Group (Erdemir), two key enterprises in Türkiye's steel industry, are actively responding to market changes to adapt to the impact of weak demand, exchange rate fluctuations and the global steel market.

1. Kardemir lowers the price of rebar

On November 6, 2024, Kardemir, Türkiye's largest producer of SMA400AP steel long products, lowered the price of deformed steel bars and wire rods by 15 dollars/ton due to sluggish market demand. The prices of 12-32mm and 36-40mm threaded steel have been reduced to 20920 lira/ton EXW (equivalent to 612 US dollars/ton) and 21270 lira/ton EXW (equivalent to 622 US dollars/ton), respectively, excluding 20% value-added tax. Since October 23rd, Kardemir's rebar listing price has been reduced by a cumulative $30/ton.

Although the domestic price has decreased, the export price of rebar in Türkiye has remained unchanged, and the buyer has a wait-and-see attitude towards the current quotation, resulting in limited market turnover. According to Mysteel data, the export price of rebar in Türkiye is 590 US dollars/ton FOB, which is stable in the near future.

2. Erdemir expands services to increase SMA400AP steel production capacity and respond to market demand

At the same time, Türkiye's largest steel manufacturer, Oyak Mining and Metallurgy Group (Erdemir), added laser cutting technology in its Ersem service center to expand related services, so as to better meet customer needs. Erdemir's statement states that its Gebze, Eregli, Iskenderun, and Manisa factories now have laser cutting capabilities, further enhancing its annual processing capacity on the existing basis.

In addition, Oyak SMA400AP steel plans to build electric arc furnaces (EAF) at Eregli and Iskenderun steel mills in the coming years to reduce carbon emissions and increase production capacity. This will increase Eregli's annual production capacity from the current 3.9 million tons to 5.3 million tons, and Iskenderun's annual production capacity from 5.8 million tons to 8.3 million tons.