core sector communique

SAIL Chairman commissions second Ladle Furnace at Rourkela Steel Plant

Steel Authority of India Ltd (SAIL) Chairman Mr C.S. Verma inaugurated the second Ladle Furnace of Steel Melting Shop-II of Rourkela Steel Plant today during his maiden visit to Rourkela. The Ladle Furnace,  is part of a Rs 197.66 crore scheme for ‘Simultaneous Blowing in Basic Oxygen Furnace (BOF) Convertors of Steel Melting Shop-II’ of RSP. Total investments envisaged for different facilities as a part of RSP modernization and expansion is Rs. 11,812 crore.  The scheme was conceived under the current modernisation and expansion plan of SAIL to take SAIL’s hot metal production capacity to a level of 23.5 million tonnes by 2012-13. RSP Managing Director Mr S.N. Singh and Director (Personnel), SAIL, Mr B.B. Singh were present on the occasion besides other senior SAIL officials and members of the Rourkela collective.

The 150 ton Ladle Furnace, procured from M/s Danieli India Limited, is meant for secondary refining of steel for finer chemistry control and maintenance of ideal temperature for continuous casting. Steel produced by BOF gets treated in the Ladle Furnace before being sent to Slab Casters to produce slabs of various sizes. With the addition of one Ladle Furnace, SMS-II of RSP now has two Ladle Furnaces. This will enhance the production capacity of SMS-II from existing 1.68 Mtpa to 1.85 Mt of liquid steel per annum, thereby increasing production of slabs by 0.17 Mtpa.

The addition of one Ladle Furnace will ensure uninterrupted production of liquid steel from SMS-II, resulting in better time management and resource optimisation. Oxygen required for simultaneous blowing of both the converters shall be met by Oxygen Plant-III, which will be commissioned shortly. The new Ladle Furnace is in line with RSP’s expansion plan of adding 3^rd Converter in SMS-II.

Other units and facilities to come up under Rourkela’s growth plan include 7.0 m tall COB No.6 (1 x 67 ovens), Sinter Plant-3 (1 x 360 m2), Blast Furnace-5 (4,060m3 useful volume), 3rd BOF (150t), LF, RH-OB and 3rd single strand Slab Caster with balancing facilities and  4.3 m wide Plate Mill of 1Mtpa.

Congratulating the Rourkela Steel collective on the completion of this major project, SAIL Chairman Mr. Verma urged them to ensure timely completion of all the projects. He expressed confidence in their abilities and dedication and emphasised that each employee can make a substantial contribution by bringing about incremental improvements in his work area.