Annual Report 2012 EUROPE BELGIUM BULGARIA ... - Duferco

Strategy
Concentration
on electric furnace
production:
Duferco is a private company with
consequent “limited” financial resources.
Being the “orphan” of mining assets, as
said before, the blast furnace production
became unsustainable. The EAF
production, instead, is more flexible, more
suitable to our core experience of quick
market responses, more regional.
Over the years, the company gained good
expertise in the production of electric arc
furnaces, also drawing benefit from its
skills in the sourcing of scrap. The factors
of profitability are more regional and
manageable.
In 2012, merchant roll production
(in Denmark) and beam production of
Duferdofin-Nucor Joint-Venture (in Italy)
continued to suffer from the European
building market recession.
In Belgium, recently, important activities are
being carried on to boost the commercial
development of this business field, to
improve its operational reorganization
and technical engineering structures
(important steps and investments are being
implemented in the scrap yard and in the
continuous casting and billet structures, as
well as in the wire-rod heating furnace).
In Denmark, Italy and Belgium, the 2012
Financial Year was merely fair due to the
poor market situation of building
products, so management activity
focused on protecting market share,
constantly improving operating
performances and on reducing impact
of fixed costs, essential to face
low-peak demand phases and
consequently moderate productions.
The Fe/Vn production in South Africa
has undergone a year of stabilization
of the activity focused on rationalisation
of the industrial process.
Notwithstanding a low level of prices,
the economic results have been balanced;
we are now well positioned to benefit
from hoped-for improvements of the
market.
14 | Duferco Annual Report 2012