One of the world's largest producers of merchant pig iron, Russia's Tulachermet, has announced the stoppage of its blast furnace (BF) No.1 for a major overhaul.
The overhaul of the BF includes the upgrading of its main equipment, the installation of a new bell-less charging system, of hydraulic equipment and of electrostatic precipitators in its aspiration system, the repair of its air heaters, and the construction of external units for the power supply and the gas cleaning system.
The overhaul will result in the construction of an almost new, modern, highly productive furnace, allowing the increase of the BF No.1's daily capacity to 3,500 mt of pig iron, ensuring a high level of ecological and production safety, and improving the working conditions of the blast furnace workers.
The total cost of the overhaul amounts to Ruble 3 billion (approx. $103 million).