With the president’s third investment conference concluded, SA’s role as the gateway to Africa is being emphasised as part of a concerted effort to restart the economy after the double whammy of Covid-19 on top of years of lacklustre growth. Yet the SA steel industry, which is crucial to fulfilling our undoubted economic potential, is teetering on the brink of catastrophe. It can still be saved, but the clock is ticking.
In short, a vibrant, innovative and competitive steel industry is a genuine national asset. Yet if urgent action is not taken we will certainly soon lose important role players within the SA steel ecosystem. We should remember, too, that “beneficiation” is frequently touted as something to be pursued in the name of economic revitalisation and job creation.
Rerollers could theoretically import the raw material but since 2017 this has been subject to “safeguard duties”, in addition to normal customs duties, designed to protect Arcelor Mittal. In return, Arcelor Mittal was bound to adhere to certain conditions, among which were to preserve jobs, not close any plants and become internationally competitive — conditions it has failed to meet. The duty on imported steel makes it uneconomical and in effect means Duferco runs at a loss.
To find a way out of this impasse, Duferco filed an urgent application with the International Trade Administration Commission in July to request a rebate on the customs and safeguard duties on imported hot-rolled coils to enable it to access this essential raw material at competitive prices. This would allow Duferco to operate sustainably.
Impossible! The tribalist unions will destroy it. Believe you me.
Their demise has been created by themselves by trying maintain a decades-long monopoly with uncompetitive pricing, self-protection, and arrogance which seriously undermined the competitiveness of their manufacturing customers in South Africa!
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