Posted on 14 Jun 2022
South Korean steelmaker POSCO formally restarted the No.4 blast furnace at its Gwangyang works on the country's southern coast after an 18-month reline and revamp that cost Won 370 billion ($293 million), according to the company. The project is a key component in the company's goal to become a low-carbon, green steel producer and carbon neutral by 2050, Mysteel Global notes.
The No.4 unit was first blown-in in September 1992 and initially boasted an inner volume of 3,800 cu m. This time, unlike under the second reline in 2009 – when POSCO took the opportunity to expand its inner volume to 5,500 cu m – the Gwangyang unit's volume remains unchanged and only the furnace's environmental protection and operation systems have been upgraded.
POSCO never reveals the pig iron capacity of its furnaces but says the No.4 unit will help the melt shop produce 5 million tonnes/year of crude steel. The Gwangyang works is the purportedly the world's largest steelworks in terms of crude steel capacity, hosting four furnaces each over 5,500 cu m in inner volume and giving the works a total crude steel capacity of over 20 million t/y.
POSCO says the Gwangyang unit's upgrade is part of an ongoing program to overhaul or replace aging facilities to ensure a safe worksite (the No.3 furnace at Gwangyang was similarly upgraded in 2020), to enhance environmental facilities to reduce air pollution, and strengthen cost effectiveness through the building of smart blast furnace systems.
The No.4 unit, for example, has new dust collection equipment installed which will reduce fine dust particles by up to 90% compared with existing furnaces, POSCO says.
Late last month, POSCO announced a massive Won 53 trillion, five-year investment program focused mostly in two areas, namely battery materials and environmental protection/carbon reduction, Mysteel Global notes.
Within the total, by 2026 it will allocate some Won 25 trillion towards "establishing the foundations for environment-friendly steel production" and building environment-friendly infrastructure, Won 2.7 trillion for venture investment and sourcing new technology, and Won 5.3 trillion for developing rechargeable battery materials and hydrogen technologies, the company announced.
Source:Mysteel Global
