On October 15, Italian steelmaker Acciaierie d’Italia officially restarted its blast furnace No. 1, which had been idle since August 2023, at its Taranto plant. Italy’s minister of enterprises and made in Italy, Adolfo Urso, and the extraordinary commissioners for Acciaierie d’Italia attended the restarting ceremony. This marks a crucial step in the plant’s revival and the beginning of its transition towards decarbonization and the adoption of electric furnaces powered by direct reduced iron (DRI).
The restart of the blast furnace No. 1 will increase production capacity, and it will also be essential to ensuring the plant’s economic sustainability during its shift to more modern and sustainable technologies. Steel production, with the activation of blast furnace No. 2 in February 2025, is expected to reach 4.5-5 million mt next year. In the long term, traditional blast furnaces will be phased out in favor of electric furnaces, in line with the strategic decarbonization plan.
A key aspect of the restart is the significant improvement in the plant’s environmental performance, thanks to the installation of systems to reduce emissions of NOx, SOx, and particulates at the thermal power station. Maintenance work included restoring the internal refractory and implementing other technical upgrades to ensure stable and safe production.
The extraordinary commissioner of Acciaierie d’Italia Giancarlo Quaranta emphasized the importance of this phase, calling the restart of the blast furnace No. 1 a tangible first step toward decarbonization and the renewal of the steelworks, which continues to be a key player in the Italian steel industry. These developments are the result of intense teamwork involving government institutions and industrial partners, contributing to the competitiveness and economic growth of the country.