Turkey steel capacity may rise more than predicted

Turkey steel capacity may rise more than predicted, Yayan says. The head of Turkey’s steel producers association said the country’s melting capacity for the metal may rise even faster than he estimated last week as prospects for the economy improve. Turkey may be able to produce 42 metric million tons of steel billets by 2015, up from 35.4 million in 2010, Veysel Yayan said at a conference in New York last week. Slab capacity may rise to 20 million tons, from 13.4 million he said. Those numbers may be exceeded as Turkey’s economy grows, he said in an interview in Washington on June 24. Rising exports from the world’s 10th-largest steel producer can be a force for stability in the Middle East, as trade ties boost goodwill between Turkey and nearby nations, Yayan said. “Foreign policies and economic policies are very interrelated,” he said. “Without good relations you cannot export, especially in our region.” Billet capacity for this year will be 35.4 million tons and slab will be 15.9 million, Yayan said. The country’s industry is continuing to diversify to meet domestic and import-nation needs, he said.