STI MAY JUNE SMALLSPINE_Layout 1 5/16/13 3:14 PM Page 1 May/June 2013 – Vol.37 No.4 – www.steeltimesint.com NEWS MARKETS AUTOMATION CONFERENCE REPORTS STEEL TIMES INTERNATIONAL – May/June 2013 – Vol.37 No.4 contents may june_Contents_STI_Mar10 5/17/13 2:32 PM Page 3 May/June 2013 Contents Vol.37/No.4 May/June 2013 – Vol.37 No.4 – www.steeltimesint.com Front cover image NEWS MARKETS AUTOMATION CONFERENCE REPORTS courtesy of Tenova EDITORIAL Editor Tim Smith PhD, CEng, MIM Tel: +44 (0) 1737 855154 [email protected] Production Editor Annie Baker SALES International Sales Manager Markets – Page 14 Markets – Page 20 Paul Rossage [email protected] Tel: +44 (0) 1737 855116 Area Sales Manager Anne Considine [email protected] Tel: +44 (0) 1737 855139 Sales Director Ken Clark [email protected] Tel: +44 (0) 1737 855117 Marketing Executive Annie O’Brien [email protected] Tel: +44 (0) 1737 855012 Advertisement Production Martin Lawrence [email protected] SUBSCRIPTION Elizabeth Barford Company profile – Page 36 Refractories – Page 39 Tel +44 (0) 1737 855028 Fax +44 (0) 1737 855034 News Email [email protected] News – Mothballing of Florange’s liquid phase 2 Steel Times International is published eight Statistics & Events – Crude steel output for Q1 up 2.3% 6 times a year and is available on subscription. 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Russian and CIS Industrial Metals Summit in Moscow 28 Printed in England by: Pensord, Tram Road, Pontlanfraith, Blackwood, Gwent NP12 2YA, UK Stainless steel forum ventures into strategic minerals 33 ©Quartz Business Media Ltd 2013 Interpipe manages a new concept of steelmaking in Ukraine 36 Improved supply of cooling water to Outokumpu AvestaPolarit 38 Improved insulating linings for industrial furnaces 39 History: The grocer who became an ironfounder to keep the chapel warm 40 FEATURE ON THE WEB www.steeltimesint.com Continuous casting: Improving thermo-mechanical rigidity of caster rolls in continuous casting machines ISSN 0143-7798 www.steeltimesint.com Steel Times International – May/June 2013 – 1 STI news may june_Layout 1 5/17/13 2:55 PM Page 1 News in Brief World News www.steeltimesint.com Chinese may reach 742Mt in 2013 China’s crude steel output is expect- Mothballing of Florange’s liquid ed to reach 742Mt this year, up 4.7% from last year, with the growth rate increasing 1.1% over phase the rate in 2012. Apparent con- sumption of crude steel is projected The mothballing of hot metal pro- R&D for reduced CO2 to increase 6.1% y-o-y to 718Mt, up duction at ArcelorMittal’s emissions 6.1%. Accordingly, China will con- Florange plant in Northern France One of the Florange blast fur- tinue to see a steel glut in 2013. is scheduled to begin in late April naces was to have been converted to May and should be completed to a demonstration plant for com- Baosteel to Buy 25% Stake in by the end of June 2013. mercial proving of blast furnace Russian Mechel Mining for Mothballing includes the stoppage top gas recycling (TGR) devel- USD1.25bn of the hot stoves, as well as stop- oped by the ULCOS consortium. Baosteel Group is reportedly in talks ping steelmaking while securing Despite the cancellation or post- with Russia’s coal and steel group the plant’s potential to restart. CEO Lakshmi Mittal ponement of this implementation Mechel over buying a 25% stake in The mothballing is compatible ArcelorMittal reaffirms its com- Mechel’s mining sector for possibly with the agreement reached with mitment to contribute up to €13M US$1.25bn. the French government. towards financing of a research The entire unit sector be valued at 206 of the 629 employees programme into CO2 reduction. US$5bn while the blocking stake is impacted by the mothballing of A detailed industrial roadmap, reportedly worth US$1.25bn. Florange’s liquid phase have established in coordination with Mechel is one of the leading Russian already left the company, the the French government, will be companies and its business includes majority of them having retired. A submitted at the next four segments: mining, steel, fer- total of 301 people have been ‘Commission de suivi’ on April 22, roalloy and power. moved to activities other than the 2013. Source: China Metals liquid phase and 122 are still e-mail [email protected] assigned to the liquid phase. Slab production Solutions for each of them will With the closure of hot metal pro- US steel market optimistic have to be found through negotia- duction at Florange, the concen- The American Institute for tions with the employees’ repre- tration of slab casting at International Steel (AIIS) says, in its sentatives. Dunkerque has already reduced April newsletter, that they believe The social aspect of the cost of production and that the underlying demand for ArcelorMittal Atlantique and improved competitiveness, vital in steel in the USA in the major steel Lorraine’s industrial and commer- pickling and rolling mills will be the current challenging environ- demand sectors such as automotive, cial project will be implemented on redeployed in the downstream ment. energy and, increasingly, construc- a voluntary basis, without layoffs. lines. Therefore, the plant’s work- ArcelorMittal stands by the tion, continues to be strong. In the Florange’s hot and cold rolling force will remain stable. industrial and economic logic of case of construction, the market is mills and its tinning line remain in As part of its commitment, its project for ArcelorMittal improving, but uncertainty contin- operation and will be used to their ArcelorMittal has launched a Atlantique and Lorraine, as it ues to burden the economy as it full capacities by reorganising €180M investment programme for addresses the structural overca- enters the second quarter. packaging steel production activi- the Florange plant. This invest- pacity of slab production in ties to develop synergies between ment has already begun, with Europe. ArcelorMittal’s current Wusteel’s IO Project in Liberia to Florenge and the Basse-Indre sites €55M invested to ensure the via- production capacity in Europe, Start Operation in H1 by developing production speciali- bility of the coke plant and sustain including the improved utilisation Wuhan Iron and Steel Group sations at both plants. the development plan for high of existing operations, is sufficient (Wusteel) announced that its iron Basse-Indre’s operates two tin- width Usibor®. Florange is now to meet medium-term steel ore mining project in Liberia, West ning lines which will be used to full the only plant in the world capable demand. African is expected to come on capacity as well as those at of producing high-strength Even if demand increases by 3% stream in the first half of this year. Florenge. Usibor® and Alusi®, in wide strip a year from 2014 onwards, by The iron ore project is jointly set up All employees affected by the giving the site a greater advantage 2018 it will still be around 15% by the China-Africa Development temporary idling of Basse-Indre’s within the automotive market. below 2007 levels. fund and Wusteel which holds a 60 % stake. The deposit has proven iron ore reserves of 1.31bnt and potential reserves of 2.785bnt. Source: China Metals Tangsteel takes 10% stake in Duferco e-mail [email protected] Tangshan Iron and Steel Group we had no idea about specific been at least 17 anti-dumping ISO standard launched for CO2 Co, or Tangsteel, has acquired a international clients of our prod- cases against Chinese steel produc- monitoring 10% stake in Swiss- based Duferco ucts and their feedback. Now our ing companies since the beginning The World Steel Association (world- International Trade Holdings, the products will be on a more interna- of 2012. MIIT statistics showed steel) welcomes the publication of an world’s largest steel trader. The tional platform with the support losses in the steel industry in 2012 ISO standard that defines a calcula- move was jointly announced from Duferco.” in China reached RMB 28.9bn tion method of carbon dioxide emis- 10 April. The volume of steel traded by ($4.61bn) in 2012. sion intensity from iron and steel pro- The two companies also signed a Duferco was more than 16Mt in Exports were essential in using duction. The standard is based on structured steel prepayment agree- 2012, which ranked it first as a the excess capacity in China’s steel the CO2 data collection methodology ment worth US$1.2bn which will trader worldwide.