The furor over graphite electrode shortages supply has abated considerably in recent months, aided by spot pricing falling towards the back end of last year.
Chinese electrode traders cut spot prices from around $25,000/mt closer to $10,000/mt in November/December, alleviating some of the concern about shortages.
But prices have risen again, and were now closer to $20,000-$25,000/mt, market sources said.
Mills that originally refused multi-year contracts from one producer and only returned to negotiate once they realized the prevailing tightness may have been disappointed, sources said.
The producer successfully sold out of those contracts, and has also sold most residual non-contractual business too.
For any tons left over, it will look to match the spot prices being offered by Indian and Chinese traders.
The issue for electrode producers was availability of raw materials, sources said.
Those without their own needle coke supply -- the vast majority of producers -- have given volume commitments for the year but shortened pricing-terms to 3-6 months, so they will have sufficient clarity over coke costs when they price for the second half of the year.
"The challenge everyone has is raw materials," one producer said.
"If you wanted an extra pound of needle coke, you could not find it. Many [electrode producers] are still slow to commit to volume for this year because they do not know how much raw material they will have" or what price it will be, he said.
The CEO of one large Turkish steelmaker said the electrode situation remained tight as a result, with one producer cutting its supply into Turkey to 7,000 mt/year from 9,000 mt. Some mills were slowing as a result, he said.
An electrode producer said no mill would have to stop because of a lack of supply, but need to amend their production schedules.
The situation was tight day-to-day and any disruption to raw material supplies could be an issue, he said.
"Nobody can utilize their capabilities to make the extra money, you can get what you need but not any more," the producer said, adding people were already trying to lock in supply for next year given the recent tightness.
Producer sources said contractual electrode prices were roughly $7,000-$10,000/mt depending on length, with those agreeing to multi-year deals at the lower end of the range.
One mill executive said his contracts were $8,500/mt plus a premium depending on size, up from around $3,000/mt last year.
Meanwhile, Mexico's ministry of economy has lifted definitive countervailing duties on electrode imports from China and the UK.
