At today’s meeting, the Supervisory Board of RHI AG approved a concept presented by the Management Board to adjust the production capacity in Europe to the growth rates, which are expected to stay low in the future. Since 2010, steel output within the European Union, with a volume of approx. 170 million tons, has been roughly 20% below the level of 2007.
For this reason, the Duisburg plant will be closed this year. The Duisburg site currently employs 122 people and primarily produces magnesia-carbon bricks for the steel industry. A social plan and a reconciliation of interests will be developed in close coordination with the workers’ council in the following weeks. In addition to these costs, a write-down of assets of roughly EUR 6 million and restoration costs of roughly EUR 10 million will be incurred in the context of the plant closure, which will affect cash flow in the coming years.