UOKiK refuses Huta Szczecin local government help

The local government in Szczecin has been denied permission to support the Huta Szczecin (HS) iron mill by the Office for Consumer and Competition Protection (UOKiK). The strategy of state support for the steel sector was specified in the government document "The restructuring and development of the steel and iron sector". Since the document, which has already been approved by the European Commission, does not include HS in the list of mills which are allowed to be propped up by the state, the local government is not in a position to help the mill pull through its financial problems. HS's current state is critical. Despite the fact that the mill has at its disposal two blast furnaces each with a capacity of 400.000 tons annually, it had to halt production for several months earlier this year. Last year's losses generated by the mill amounted to zł. 12.9 million. (Gazeta Wyborcza, Aug. 9-10, p. 25) A.Z.