Metalloinvest increases productivity of vacuum degasser at Ural Steel

Ural Steel (part of Metalloinvest) has completed modernisation of the vacuum degasser at the electric arc furnace shop (EAFS), which increased the unit’s capacity by 50% to 1.8 mn tonnes per year.

Total investments in the project amounted to RUB 230 mn. The supplier of the equipment was Italian company Danieli. The upgrade of the vacuum degasser included installation of an additional steam ejector vacuum pump.

The upgraded vacuum degasser unit allows for higher production volumes of treated steel and hence increases the output of steel products. The upgrade was carried out as part of the modernisation of the four-strand continuous casting machine (CCM #1) at Ural Steel. As part of the modernisation, CCM #1 is adapted to produce 455mm billets for railway wheels and square billets with section measurements of 300 x 330 mm for rail production.

Andrey Ugarov, COO of Management Company Metalloinvest, commented: “As Ural Steel introduces the production of new types of railway wheel billets and blooms, the company needs more vacuumed steel. The vacuum degasser upgrade allows us to significantly increase the output of high-quality steel products that are demanded by our customers."