Russian iron ore and steel producer Metalloinvest has launched the upgraded blast furnace (BF) No. 2 with an increased total Pig iron output capacity of 760,000mt per annum at its subsidiary Ural Steel, the company said in a statement.
Post upgrade, Ural Steel’s BF No. 2 has the advantage of being able to operate on a charge using up to 95pc iron ore pellets content in the charge as compared to a traditional BF.
The company had invested RUB2.5 bn ($33.5mn) in the project and the equipment was supplied by Danieli Corus.
It added that it is also planning to upgrade BF No. 3 at Ural Steel and begin its reconstruction in February 2021. After the upgrade, both the BFs’ Pig iron capacity together will increase to 2mn mt while coke consumption and cutting costs will reduce.
The implementation of the measures is expected to improve the company’s efficiency and reduce its environmental footprint.