Nikopol Ferroalloy may be forced to stop production on November 1 due to lack of demand, said General Director Vladimir Kutsin, in an interview with a local TV station yesterday. Kutsin said the company was in the process of preparing a number of measures to halt the plant for a one-month period. During that time, Kutsin said that maintenance and repair work would be carried out. Andriy Gerus: The key issue here is the steel market. Due to low demand for steel, steel plants decreased output by 20-50% in September-November and accordingly need less ferroalloy. We expect the steel market to recover at the beginning of 2009 and the appetite for ferroalloy to revive.