Concerns rise over potential closure of ArcelorMittal South Africa's long steel business

Newcastle communities have raised major concern about the possible closure of ArcelorMittal South Africa (Amsa) and its long steel business, putting close to 4 000 jobs on the line. This follows Amsa announcing on Tuesday that a sustainable solution has not been implemented to secure the future of its Long Steel Business beyond the current deferral period, which ends on 30 September 2025.

Amsa said that the company has worked closely with the Industrial Development Corporation (IDC), government, and other stakeholders to explore every possible strategic option. “Unfortunately, no solution has been concluded yet. As a result, the Newcastle blast furnace has been placed into temporary care and maintenance, and the company is now taking preparatory steps towards the potential closure of the long steel business. This includes communication with employees and, if required, the issuing of notices in terms of the Labour Relations Act.”

Johan Pieters, the chairman of the Newcastle Growth Coalition Chapter, said that they have called for an urgent meeting with Amsa. “The Newcastle Growth Coalition Chapter took note of the possible closure of long steel business in Newcastle and the memo sent to Amsa Newcastle employees on Friday evening and during the weekend.”

Pieters added that the Newcastle Growth Coalition Chapter will be sending invites to the CEO of Amsa, IDC, provincial leadership, national leadership, and companies in Newcastle to attend a robust meeting next week Thursday evening in Newcastle. “At this meeting, we will discuss the future of Amsa Long Steel Newcastle but the future plans of our city Newcastle,” added Pieters.

Newcastle Residents Forum chairperson Matthew Shunmugam said that they are deeply concerned and disappointed over the closure of ArcelorMittal South Africa's long steel operations in Newcastle. “The loss of over 2 000 local jobs and 3 500 nationally will have a devastating impact on our community. We urge the government to take immediate action to mitigate the effects of this closure and support affected workers and businesses.”

Shunmugam added that over 2 000 direct jobs will be lost in Newcastle, with thousands more affected in the steel value chain. “The closure will impact local businesses, such as suppliers, contractors, and service providers, leading to further job losses and economic decline. The loss of a major industry player will reduce economic activity in Newcastle, affecting local GDP and revenue.”

Shunmugam said that the closure will contribute to increased unemployment rates in Newcastle, exacerbating existing socio-economic challenges. “The closure marks the end of an era for Newcastle, with potential long-term consequences for the city's economic development and identity.”

Willie Venter, Deputy General Secretary: Metal & Engineering at Solidarity, said that retrenchments would not only affect the steel industry, but that all indications currently point to a retrenchment bloodbath that could hit several industries in South Africa. “If major companies such as Amsa fail to stay afloat, the government should realise that the country is on the brink of industrial disaster.The closure of Amsa’ longs steel plants will have a ripple effect on downstream manufacturing, also affecting various other industries that depend on Amsa’s products.”

The JSE SENS announcement said that during the six-month deferral period ending on 30 September 2025 (“Deferral Period”). “The Company has been exploring various strategic options while the IDC has simultaneously been conducting its due diligence into the Company and the Government has been pursuing structural interventions. Despite the hard work put in by management, the IDC, Government and other stakeholders, a solution has not been implemented.”

The announcement added that the Newcastle blast furnace has been placed into temporary care and maintenance and the company must now take further preparatory steps towards the potential closure of the Longs Business, including communication with employees.

Minister of Employment and Labour, Nomakhosazana Meth, said that the Department has been part of ongoing efforts by key stakeholders to mitigate job losses at Amsa. “A significant funding allocation of R416 838 844.46 from the Unemployment Insurance Fund (UIF) under the Temporary Employer/Employee Relief Scheme (TERS) to support 2,982 employees was secured in May 2025 for Amsa.”

“The company is adamant about proceeding with the wind down. Amsa had hoped to secure further funding, which they were unable to secure. In the absence of securing the funding, the UIF funding did not materialise as our agreement is conditional upon a company providing a guarantee that they would not affect any retrenchments. The primary purpose of our mandate is to preserve jobs; therefore, part of the condition is that companies cannot enter a retrenchment process whilst undertaking a turnaround strategy. Hence the deal collapsed. It is unfortunate that we have reached this point with Amsa, but we remain committed to the intervention strategy,” added Meth.

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