Kametstal overhauls blast furnace No. 9

Kametstal is carrying out a major overhaul of the third stage of blast furnace No. 9 in the blast furnace shop. This is stated in the company’s press release.

The work is being carried out by the shop’s maintenance staff in cooperation with Metinvest Promservice. The unit is to have its charging apparatus replaced and the cooling system partially upgraded. In particular, 64 protective plates of the upper part of the blast furnace, a shoulder cooler and two main pressure lines with a diameter of 630 mm are to be replaced. The tuyere coolers will be partially updated.

The foundry equipment is also being repaired. In particular, the machines for opening and closing pig iron gates are being replaced. As part of the planned work, communications are being restored to ensure stable operation of the control and measurement equipment, and thermoprobes are being replaced to record the furnace gas flow. The work is expected to be completed in two weeks.

«The joint efforts of contractors and blast furnace shop specialists are aimed at improving the reliability of the main equipment and its trouble-free operation. Stabilization of the furnace thermal regime and minimization of unscheduled equipment downtime will provide blast furnace operators with better opportunities to meet their pig iron production targets and achieve effective team goals,» the plant said.

As GMK Center reported earlier, in 2023, Kametstal shipped more than 1.996 million tons of steel to customers. Almost 5% of the total volume was shipped to Ukrainian customers, and more than 65% – to foreign customers.