Evraz confirms new blast furnace for Nizhny Tagil

EVRAZ announced the start of a new blast furnace at its Nizhny Tagil Metallurgical Plant in Sverdlovsk, Russia.

The FTSE 250 firm said a symbolic plate was laid into the foundation of the unit during a Steelworker’s Day celebration.

“We continue to invest in the development of our steel production in Nizhny Tagil, despite the unfavorable market situation,” said Maxim Andriasov, EVRAZ vice president and the head of the Urals division.

“The construction of a new blast furnace No. 7 is an alternative to the halt of the blast furnace No. 6 for the first category repair.

“It will give us an opportunity to maintain the production of pig iron at EVRAZ NTMK at five million tons per year.”

EVRAZ said the volume of the new blast furnace will amount to 2,200 cubic metres, with the production capacity of 2.5 million tonnes of pig iron each year.

The furnace will have two fully-enclosed casting yards, EVRAZ said, as well as automated systems of furnace filling and external cooling, high capacity aspiration systems and stoves.

Currently, two blast furnaces with an effective volume of 2,200 cubic metres each are in operation at EVRAZ NTMK, with the company claiming them to be the most productive and efficient in Russia and Europe.

The company’s investment in the construction of the new blast furnace will not exceed $170m, it said, with the bulk of the spending planned for 2017-2018.