OMK to build a complex for the production of steel in an electric arc furnace based on DRI pellets

Russian manufacturer of steel pipes and railroad wheels OMK will build a steel pellet mill - Russia's first iron ore complex and steelmaking facility to be installed at a single site, with a 70% reduction in CO2 emissions compared to traditional oxygen fuel. oven.

The complex, which is expected to be operational in the second half of 2024, will include a 2.5 Mtpa plant for the production of metallized pellets using direct reduction iron (DRI) technology and an electric arc furnace (EAF) with a capacity up to 1.8 million tons /year of steel capacity.

The technological capabilities of the complex will make it possible to produce a number of semi-finished products for the production of pipes and railway wheels. The EAF-based smelting shop will cast three types of steel: thick slabs, round blooms and round billets.

All these semi-finished products will go to the production of pipes and railroad wheels at the flagship Vyksa Steel Works (VMZ) of OMK in the Nizhny Novgorod Region, with any surplus sold on the market.

In particular, the complex will be able to produce thick slabs that meet the highest requirements for steel purity and quality, which will be transformed at the Vyksa plant into slabs for the production of large-diameter pipes for subsea pipelines.

The total investment in the project is 150 billion rubles ($ 2 billion), including VAT.

According to OMK, the selected technology is the most environmentally friendly and energy efficient technology ever used in Russia and is being promoted under a green brand name. It is the latest solution for steelmaking and at the same time achieves a 70% reduction in CO2 emissions compared to a blast furnace, and has a gas cleaning efficiency of 99.5%, and its performance meets the current and future EU requirements for responsible of manufactured steel products.

Technology also implies the shortest production chain. For the first time in Russia, the production of iron ore raw materials for the production of steel with a continuous supply of hot reduced pellets to an electric arc furnace will be installed at one site.

Italian engineering company Danieli will supply 400 million euros ($ 474 million) of solutions and equipment for the complex. This includes a direct reduction plant based on ENERGIRON technology, a hot pellet feed system for particle boards, a ladle furnace, a vacuum degasser, a gas cleaning system and a continuous casting machine.

The project is of strategic importance for the Russian economy: it will contribute to the growth of domestic consumption