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Blast Furnace Construction Progressing at NLMK
Jan. 19, 2010 Installation of the basic structures at Novolipetsk Steel’s new blast furnace #7, with 3.4 million tonnes annual capacity, has been completed. More than 30% of the work is finished, according to NLMK. The furnace’s shell, including its support system, off-gas system, charging device, and stove housing, has been installed.
Installation of the bin trestle for ore and coke material intake and feeding, and installation of the refractory lining, has begun. In 2010, NLMK plans to install basic process equipment, and by mid-2011, the automatic process control system should be implemented and hot testing is scheduled to begin.
The new blast furnace facility and related units will be located in a 78-hectare area in the southern part of the Lipetsk production site. Construction is expected to use 75,000 tonnes of steel structures, 25,000 tonnes of refractories, and 40,000 tonnes of process equipment. The facility’s infrastructure will also include about 50 km of new railways and motor roads.
The construction of BF-7 started in 2008. This project is being implemented by NLMK in conjunction with Paul Wurth (Luxemburg) and UZTM (Yekaterinburg) within the framework of Stage II of NLMK's Technical Upgrade Program.
The new furnace will increase NLMK’s steel-making capacity at its main production site in Lipetsk by 40% to 12.4 million tonnes per year in 2012.