Steel

• Natural Resource Partners to buy properties in W.Va. Dec 20, 2006

  Natural Resource Partners LP, Houston, is buying coal reserves from Dingess-Rum Properties Inc., Charleston, W.Va., which contain metallurgical-grade material.

• Arcelor Mittal to buy Sicartsa for $1.44B Dec 20, 2006

  Arcelor Mittal has signed a deal to acquire Siderúrgica Lázaro Cárdenas Las Truchas (Sicartsa), a integrated long products mill in Mexico, from Grupo Villacero SA for $1.44 billion.

• Hot-rolled steel prices continue downward trend Dec 20, 2006

  U.S. spot market prices for carbon hot-rolled sheet slipped another $20 per ton in the past week as producers continued to wait out an inventory correction at the service center level.

• CMC plans to build ‘micro mill’ in Arizona Dec 20, 2006

  Commercial Metals Co., Irving, Texas, announced that it is intending to build a “micro-mill” in the Phoenix area.

• La. lawmakers approve fund for TK project Dec 19, 2006

  Louisiana officials took a step forward in their attempts to lure a $3-billion-plus steel mill construction project but without committing a dime.

• China firm sees plate duty surge Dec 19, 2006

  U.S. anti-dumping duties on cut-to-length carbon steel plate from China Metallurgical Import & Export Liaoning Co. Ltd. have jumped to 128.59 percent from 17.33 percent.

• Chaparral earnings nearly double to $67.5 million Dec 19, 2006

  Chaparral Steel Co., Midlothian, Texas, nearly doubled its second-quarter profit, recording a net income of $67.5 million, or $1.40 per diluted share.

• Chinese firm sees plate duty surge Dec 19, 2006

  Anti-dumping duties on cut-to-length carbon steel plate from China Metallurgical Import & Export Liaoning Co. Ltd., have jumped to 128.59 percent from 17.33 percent.

• Lamy ties fate of Doha talks to trade authority renewal Dec 19, 2006

  Doha is dead, but the World Trade Organization is not ready to yank it off life support yet.

• Revised Tata, CSN bids for Corus due by Jan. 30 Dec 19, 2006

  Tata Steel Ltd., Mumbai, India, and Cia. Siderúrgica Nacional (CSN), Rio de Janeiro, have until Jan. 30 to revise their offers for Anglo-Dutch steelmaker Corus Group Plc, according to a ruling by an independent body that regulates British takeovers and mergers.

• Taiyuan anticipates higher stainless output Dec 19, 2006

  China’s largest stainless steel producer, Taiyuan Iron & Steel (Group) Co. Ltd., is planning to raise stainless production by 70 to 80 percent to 2 million tonnes in 2007. The company’s rough production plan also calls for output of 2 million tonnes of carbon steel next year

• Asia drives world stainless production higher Dec 19, 2006

  World crude stainless steel production totaled nearly 20.9 million tonnes in the first nine months of this year, up 13 percent from about 18.5 million tonnes in the same period last year due largely to a rise in Asian output, the International Stainless Steel Forum (ISSF) said.

• Louisiana officials approve fund for TK project Dec 19, 2006

  Louisiana officials took a step forward in their attempts to lure a $3-billion-plus steel mill construction project without yet committing a dime.

• Claymont initial public offering raises $147.9M Dec 19, 2006

  The initial public offering of Claymont Steel Holdings Inc., Claymont, Del., raised $147.9 million when the shares were sold Monday at the upper end of the company’s projected price range.

• Carlyle completes JMC and Atlas Tube merger Dec 19, 2006

  Private equity company Carlyle Group, Washington, has completed its merger of John Maneely Co. (JMC) and Atlas Tube Inc. Carlyle acquired JMC, parent of Wheatland Tube Co., in March, and announced in October it was purchasing Atlas Tube, a Canadian manufacturer of hollow structural sections, and merging the two companies.

• Samancor, Sinosteel win approval for planned chrome joint venture Dec 19, 2006

  Samancor Ltd. and China’s Sinosteel Corp. have received approval from South Africa’s Competition Commission and China’s National Development and Reform Commission for their planned joint venture.

• Ford to sell parts plants in Michigan, Mexico Dec 19, 2006

  Ford Motor Co., Dearborn, Mich., said it has agreed to sell automotive part manufacturing facilities in Milan, Mich., and El Jarudo, Mexico, to Flex-N-Gate Corp., Urbana, Ill., and Cooper Standard Automotive Inc., Novi, Mich.

• WCI’s conservation tab at $1.7M in EPA deal Dec 19, 2006

  It will cost WCI Steel Inc., Warren, Ohio, about $1.7 million to settle environmental claims against its predecessor company under the federal Resource Conservation and Recovery Act.

• Timken sells automotive steering business [UPDATE] Dec 19, 2006

  In a further effort to advance its automotive group’s restructuring plans, Timken Co., Canton, Ohio, has sold its automotive steering business.

• Claymont Steel’s IPO raises $147.9 million Dec 19, 2006

  The initial public offering of Claymont Steel Holdings Inc., Claymont, Del., raised $147.9 million as the shares were sold Monday at the upper end of the company’s projected price range.

• WCI settles conservation case with EPA Dec 19, 2006

  WCI Steel Inc., Warren, Ohio, will pay approximately $1.7 million as part of a settlement with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency related to claims against its parent company related to the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA).

• Carlyle completes merger of JMC and Atlas Tube Dec 19, 2006

  Private equity firm Carlyle Group, Washington, has completed its merger of John Maneely Co. (JMC) and Atlas Tube Inc., the firm has announced.

• Timken sells automotive steering business Dec 19, 2006

  In a further effort to advance its automotive group’s restructuring plans, Timken Co., Canton, Ohio, has sold its automotive steering business.

• Alcoa, Kobe to dissolve auto sheet ventures Dec 18, 2006

  Kobe Steel Ltd. and Alcoa Inc. plan to dissolve two aluminum auto sheet joint ventures, citing disappointing demand.