Metinvest to streamline the blast-furnace production at Azovstal

Two blast furnaces will be shut down at Azovstal: the blast furnace No. 5 will be put out of operation, and the blast furnace No. 6 will be overhauled. According to Metinvest press service, pig iron will be produced in the modernized blast furnace No. 3 to be launched in the near term.

Blast-furnace production is being reconstructed within the framework of the Technology Strategy 2030 that envisages a number of environmental measures. The overhaul of the blast furnace No. 6 will enhance its efficiency, decrease production costs, and reduce dust emissions by 55%. Following the construction of a pulverized coal injection (PCI) unit for the blast furnace No. 6, all blast furnaces at Azovstal will be equipped in the same way.

The aspiration system will also be reconstructed during the overhaul: the electrostatic precipitator will be replaced with two bag filters, one of which will absorb emissions from the cast house, and another from the skip pit and the loading unit.

Pig iron will be produced at Azovstal in the modernized blast furnace No. 3 to be launched in the near term. The overhaul will help double its annual capacity, up to 1.3–1.6 million tons, and cut production costs through reducing coke consumption.

Construction of a PCI unit for the blast furnace will enable reducing the natural gas consumption. As a result of the reconstruction of the aspiration system and a shift to closed-cycle cooling of the blast furnace, dust emissions will be reduced by 64%. Investment in modernization is estimated at over $145 million. The new equipment will make the blast furnace No. 3 one of the most environmentally friendly in Ukraine.

Metinvest’s total expenses under environmental projects in 2014–2018 exceeded UAH 25 billion (+74%): in 2014 — UAH 4.25 billion, 2015 — UAH 4.26 billion, 2016 — UAH 4.46 billion, 2017 — UAH 5.37 billion, and 2018 — UAH 7.4 billion.

As reported earlier, the Metinvest Group has increased production of steel by 6%, up to 1.9 million tons, in January–March compared to the same period in 2018.