NLMK commissions color coating line No. 3

The Russian steelmaker Novolipetsk Steel (NLMK) has announced the commissioning of its 20,000 mt per year color coating line No. 3 for cold rolled galvanized steel, which will allow it to increase its total production capacity of this high value-added product by 53 percent to 580,000 mt per year, strengthening its position as a supplier of high quality steel for the construction and white goods manufacturing sectors.
 
The project, implemented as part of the second stage of NLMK's technical upgrade program, amounted to Ruble 3 billion (about $106 million).
 
The new color coating line No. 3 has expanded NLMK's capability to produce finished painted strip of 0.3-0.8 mm thickness and 700-1,250 mm width, which are in high demand in the domestic market, as they are used in the manufacture of steel structures.
 
Galvanized steel required for color coated steel production will be supplied from NLMK's continuous hot dip galvanizing line No. 4, which was commissioned at the end of 2009.
 
NLMK's share in the Russian domestic market of color coated flats amounts to over 21 percent.  NLMK produced over 332,000 mt of color coated steel in 2010, with 96 percent delivered to the Russian market. Color coated steel accounted for 3.6 percent of NLMK's sales in 2010.