Kumba Iron Ore may look for other domestic buyers to take extra ore if ArcelorMittal’s South African unit shuts down one of its plants, Business Report newspaper said on Monday.
The South African arm of the world’s largest steel maker said on Friday it may close its 1,2-million-tonne Saldhana plant and cut all exports after it failed to reach a deal with Kumba over ore prices.
Kumba, a unit of of global miner Anglo American, is the world’s tenth-largest producer of iron ore.
In February it terminated a long-term deal under which it sold ore to ArcelorMittal at a discount, saying it would sell at market rates from March. The dispute has been in mediation since.
“There are customers who could take extra iron ore domestically, there are opportunities,” the newspaper quoted a Kumba spokesperson as saying.
No one was immediately available at Kumba to confirm whether it was looking for other iron ore buyers.
Shares of ArcelorMittal and Kumba were both little changed in Johannesburg trade. ArcelorMittal was up 0,6% at R72,40 as of 8.47am GMT, while Kumba was down 0,8% at R336,43.
South Africa’s minister for trade and industry is due to meet with the two companies on Monday to resolve the dispute.
Kumba wants to make the steel maker pay for ore in advance, starting in August. ArcelorMittal previously rejected Kumba’s proposed two new pricing systems while the dispute was in arbitration.
ArcelorMittal said Kumba’s plans could hurt its business and force it to shut down the Saldhana plant, which produces 1,2-million tonnes of steel per year, affecting up to 4 000 jobs. – Reuters