UK-based plantmaker Primetals Technologies has announced that the first coil has been successfully produced at the new Arvedi ESP plant supplied by the company to Chinese steel producer Zhongshou Special Steel’s facilities in Luanzhou, Hebei Province, China.
According to Primetals, the first coil was produced on May 13, just five days after the first cast. The plantmaker stated that the facility had already started operating in endless mode on May 16. Primetals stated that the new facility is the 11th Arvedi ESP plant to be put into operation worldwide. With its 130 mm-thick caster, four roughing stands and five finishing stands, the plant represents the most powerful and productive Arvedi ESP line installed to date in China, according to the plantmaker.
The technology provider also stated that the plant is designed to cover a wide mix of steel grades, ranging from low-carbon steels to high-strength low-alloy steels.
Zhongshou targets lower-carbon steel production
Zhongshou Special Steel, the operator of the plant and customer of Primetals, is pursuing a strategic transition away from the conventional blast furnace-LD converter, or BOF, hot strip mill production route. According to Primetals, Zhongshou Group is instead moving toward an electric arc furnace-based meltshop combined with endless casting and rolling technologies.
Zhongshou Special Steel Group chairman Zheng Ting Wen said the company aims to maintain a front-runner position in green steel production in both domestic and international markets, while also competing in markets protected by Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism restrictions. He added that Arvedi ESP technology and its low carbon footprint will play a key role in achieving this target.
Primetals stated that the startup of the plant marks a significant milestone in Zhongshou Group’s decarbonization strategy and described the company as a groundbreaker in the progressive decarbonization of the Chinese steel industry.
