NLMK-Long Products launches new production facility

In December 2010 the NSMMZ Rolling Facility in Berezovsky (NLMK-Long Products, NLMK subsidiary) obtained a favourable report from the Federal Service for Environmental, Technological and Nuclear Supervision of the Russian Federation in addition to authorization for its launch.

The facility, which has the capacity to process approximately 1 million tonnes of steel per year, is a vital part of the NLMK-Long Products production chain, linking scrap collecting enterprises with EAF steelmaking, long products and hardware manufacturing units. The project parameters and process equipment make it one of the most state-of-the-art and high-tech in Russia.

The facility is equipped with advanced equipment from leading global manufacturers – Danieli, SMS Meer, Sund Birsta. The basic process equipment is a high-capacity two-strand rolling mill 150 with a rolling speed of up to 110 m/s, ensuring high quality of the finished product. The new unit will produce coiled rebar (## 6 to 16), as well as 5.5-22 mm wire rod, with the target of further developing the Company’s metalware production.

During start-up operations, the Company mastered the production of a wide range of rebar and wire rod products. For example, NLMK-Long Products was the first in Russia to launch the production of class A500C heat-strengthened reinforcing bars in coils with the diameter of 6.0 to 12.0 mm which are in high demand from the construction industry. Moreover, NLMK-Long Products has started the production of wire rod for cold heading, i.e. for hardware manufacturing by cold die-forging, as well as wire rod made from high-carbon and special welding steel grades for the Russian market. Commissioning and further upgrades to the shop will allow NLMK-Long Products to achieve a total long products capacity of over 2 mtpy, strengthening its position in the long products market and providing the Company with a 20% share of the Russian rebar market and a 16% share of the Russian wire rod market. Subsequently, once construction of the Kaluga EAF Mini-Mill is completed, the Company plans to increase its rebar market share up to 25%.

NLMK-Long Products is NLMK’s subsidiary, consolidating NLMK Group's Long Products Division since December 2009. NLMK-Long Products companies make up an integrated production structure covering the entire cycle from collection and processing of ferrous scrap to manufacturing downstream steel products – rebar, wire rod and hardware. NLMK-Long Products key companies are: NSMMZ in the Sverdlovsk Region (combining EAF steelmaking in Revda, rebar production in Nizhnie Sergi and rebar and wire rod production in the new rolling shop in Beresovsky) and UZPS (hardware). The Kaluga EAF Mini-Mill, with a capacity of up to 1.5 mtpy of long products is currently under construction. The Company's production structure also includes the ferrous scrap collecting and processing division, Vtorchermet NLMK, represented in 35 regions of Russia, that provides raw materials for steelmaking facilities at NLMK-Long Products and Novolipetsk.