NLMK increases galvanized steel production with new line

NLMK Lipetsk has started construction of a new continuous hot-dip galvanizing line, HDGL-5, the company says.

The capacity will be 450,000 tonnes/year of galv, Kallanish notes. The investment will exceed RUB 12 billion ($158 million). The start-up of the line is planned for 2022.

In 2019, NLMK signed a contract with Tenova for base engineering and the supply of main process equipment. The new line will produce high-quality steel for the construction, automotive, and white goods industries.

Currently, NLMK Lipetsk’s coated steel operations comprise four continuous hot-dip galvanizing lines with a total capacity of 1.25 million t/y and three pre-painting lines with a 550,000 t/y capacity.

NLMK’s steel output and sales were impacted in the second quarter by declining demand in its traditional sales markets due to the Covid-19 pandemic (see Kallanish passim). It expects lower on-year steel output at its principal Russian Lipetsk site in Q3 because of major overhauls of its hot-end operations, namely blast furnace No.4 and basic oxygen converter No.3.

Consolidated output of crude steel decreased to 3.9mt in Q2, down by -8% on-quarter and -3% on-year. This was due to lower capacity utilisation rates at NLMK Russia Long Products and NLMK USA.