Chelyabinsk Metallurgical Plant, a subsidiary of Russian mining and steel producing group Mechel, has restarted operations at its electro-smelting shop No. 6, which were halted about two and a half months ago due to the lack of orders.
Accordingly, Chelyabinsk Metallurgical Plant's electro-smelting shop No.6 is to operate at its full capacity, producing up to 1,000 mt of steel per day. Moreover, the shop's slab concaster is scheduled to restart its operations on February 1, 2009, and to increase its output capacities in Q1 in line with received orders, which may amount to 300,000 mt.
In addition, in April 2009 Chelyabinsk Metallurgical Plant plans to recommission its BF. No. 4 with an annual production capacity of 900,000 mt of pig iron, but which was actually producing up to 1.2 million mt per year. Currently, BFs No. 1 and No. 5 are operating at the plant, with respective production capacities of 1.3 million mt and 1.1 million mt of pig iron per year.
In 2008, Chelyabinsk Metallurgical Plant registered a seven percent decrease year on year in its crude steel output to 4.675 million mt.