NLMK Group to employ new technology to boost quality and reduce cost of coke production

NLMK Group, a global steel company, is designing equipment to implement stamp charging process at Altai-Koks. This will boost coke quality and reduce the cost of its production through use of more cost-efficient grades of coking coals.

Stamping technology is under implementation at Coke Plant No. 5, which launched in 2006 with a design capacity of 1.1 mtpa, and covers 25% of all Altai-Koks production needs. The scope of the project includes an overhaul of the plant, construction of a storage bunker equipped with stamping machines, and installation of conveyors and machines for loading stamped charge into the oven.

Instead of the conventional top charging method, stamped charging involves feeding already compacted coal briquettes into the oven horizontally. This ensures a better quality of coke and a reduction in the share of expensive grades of coal, as stamped coke particles bake better, boosting the CSR and increasing resistance to mechanical stress during transportation and loading into the blast furnace.

Konstantin Lagutin, NLMK Group Vice President, Investment Projects, said:

“Altai-Koks covers NLMK Group’s coke requirements. Stamping technology will enable us to reach two goals, both improving the quality of coke and reducing its production cost, thus boosting the efficiency of NLMK’s blast furnace operations. The upgraded Coke Plant will be equipped with highly efficient, advanced systems for capturing and treating off-gases, significantly improving the environmental performance of the process.”

Project investment will total 57 m euro. The project is currently in the design stage, with the equipment for the coke plant upgrade currently in the manufacturing stage. Set-up and start-up operations are planned for H2 2019.