DECISION ON MELTING SHOP AND CONTINUOUS CASTING PLANT IN DEGERFORS

DECISION ON MELTING SHOP AND CONTINUOUS CASTING PLANT IN degerfors Upon closure of the melting shop in Degerfors in September 2003, the melting shop and continuous casting plant was placed into an active mothball pending an ultimate decision on what to do with the assets. This was to ensure that this decision provided the best possible solution for both the company and the Degerfors site. After further investigation the original picture is valid. That is, that the company, following the expansion in Tornio, has adequate melting capacity to meet anticipated steelmaking requirements for several years to come. The slab and bloom requirements for Hot Rolled Plate and Degerfors Stainless will be met by the Avesta and SMACC meltshop. Maintaining the mothballed facility is both expensive and an obstacle to the long-term development of the site in Degerfors. All employee transfers and related measures resulting from the closure of the melting shop have already been implemented and accordingly, today's decision has no impact to the numbers employed at Outokumpu Stainless in Degerfors. For further information, please contact: Leif Rosén, Senior Vice President - Hot Rolled Plate, Degerfors, phone: +46 (0)586 470 00 or cell phone +46 (0)70 330 4186. Olof Faxander, President - Special Products Division, phone: +358 (0)9 421 5567 or cell phone +358 (0)40 564 1127. ------------------------------------------------------------ This information was brought to you by Waymaker http://www.waymaker.net The following files are available for download: http://www.waymaker.net/bitonline/2004/03/25/20040325BIT00710/wkr0001.doc http://www.waymaker.net/bitonline/2004/03/25/20040325BIT00710/wkr0002.pdf