Mechel, one of the leading Russian mining and steel groups, has announced the launch of a modernized steelmaking complex at its Romanian-based subsidiary Ductil Steel Otelu Rosu.
The new complex includes a new electric arc furnace with the COSS system developed by the German-based company Fuchs Technology, an upgraded continuous billet caster, and a modern scrap metal preparation section.
The COSS equipment in Otelu Rosu will be the third such to be implemented in the world and the first such in Europe. The COSS-equipped furnace has a designed production capacity of some 810,000 mt of steel a year.
Investment in the plant's modernization program amounted to $48.7 million.
"Completion of the investment project at the Otelu Rosu plant will enable us to fully provide Mechel's Romanian enterprises with raw materials, which will dramatically cut costs and improve the efficiency of their work," Mechel board chairman Igor Zyuzin said.