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New factory is the largest of its kind in the world
November 12, 2009
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The steel manufacturer spent a total of 1.5 trillion won ($1.3 billion) on the electric furnace, which takes up 16 million square meters (3,953.7 acres) of land. The furnace took almost two years to build. It was made with the Consteel system, which is known to sharply reduce carbon dioxide emissions, especially in comparison to the system used in blast furnaces. Dongbu Steel is the first Korean company to use the Consteel system. The company is hoping the furnace will help it save money on imports of cold-rolled steel. The new furnace can produce 3 million tons of cold-rolled steel sheets every year. Considering Dongbu Steel imported 7.6 million tons of cold-rolled steel last year, the company is hoping the furnace will generate a savings in the roughly $1.5 billion it spends on imports every year. Before the Dongbu Plant was built, U.S. steel producer Nucor Corp. held the record for the world’s largest electric furnace. Its furnace churned out 2.5 million tons of steel per year. Nucor was the first steelmaker to adopt the electric furnace, which was a radical change from the furnaces that had been fueled by iron ore and bituminous coal since 1989. “With the completion of the electric furnace we will move forward with becoming a global steel manufacturer that has the capacity to produce one million tons of steel every year,” said Kim Jun-ki, Dongbu Group Chairman, during the opening ceremony for the electric furnace. “We could add a steel production plant capable of producing a minimum of eight million tons per year here,” Kim said. “We are looking at building a new electric furnace with a production capacity of one million tons.” In describing the furnace, the chairman emphasized its competitiveness. “The electric furnace is a revolutionary system discovered by developed countries when they were searching for ways to cut costs, reduce energy consumption and become less dependent on coal and iron ore,” Kim said. He also made note of how far the electric furnace has come, saying that when it was first introduced, it was used to make low-end products like garbage bins, but that it is now capable of making steel for automobiles. “In the U.S., the blast furnace is on the decline,” Kim said, adding that “Steel produced by electric furnaces accounts for 55 percent of all steel produced in the U.S., and 45 percent of total steel production in Europe.” He said that the steel furnace is the appropriate choice for Korea, which has no natural resources. By Lee Ho-jeong |
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