Northern Mining automates control systems to improve safety

The plant is upgrading its dispatch and production systems, reducing resource consumption, and increasing efficiency

Metinvest Group’s Northern Mining and Processing Plant (Northern Mining ) is continuing to implement automated process control systems (APCS) aimed at improving occupational safety, stabilizing product quality, and making more efficient use of resources. This is according to a statement by Metinvest.Media.

The 2024-2025 projects cover key production areas and involve the extensive modernization of outdated equipment.

Since 2021, the company’s automation management specialists have updated the systems in most workshops. Currently, all critical processes are displayed in real time on the monitors of dispatchers, operators, and department managers, which allows for rapid control of machine loads, operating modes of units, and the technical condition of equipment.

One of the key projects was the upgrade of the automated dispatch control system for the grinding and crushing sections of the No. 2 roll production workshop. The system, which had been operating since 1978 on a relay-contact basis, was replaced with a modern SIEMENS microprocessor solution. This made it possible to automate the control and management of the loading, grinding, and transportation of bentonite and limestone, as well as to significantly speed up the diagnosis of possible failures.

At the same time, the plant continued to modernize the water consumption control system at ore processing plant No. 1: nine new magnetic induction flow meters were installed on the pipelines to the mill and classifier. In addition, an automated control system for bunker scales at weighing stations 11-12 was put into operation in the No. 2 pellet production shop.

The implementation of these projects has made it possible to ensure stable quality indicators for finished products and reduce energy consumption. To improve the quality control of rolled products, a modern microprocessor-based sampling system based on SIEMENS equipment has also been introduced.

The company notes that despite the difficult war conditions, the team continues to develop automation, and the solutions and experience gained by Northern Mining are already being scaled up to other mining and processing assets of Metinvest.

As a reminder, in July 2025, Northern Mining launched two gas generators as part of a program to ensure the energy independence of Metinvest Group’s enterprises. In two months of operation, they have generated 1,040 MWh of electricity and achieved an economic effect of UAH 2.3 million. In total, it is planned to install four such units.