Salzgitter has started the reline of its blast furnace A, while simultaneously re-activating the smaller blast furnace C, which has been idle since 2019.

In the course of around 100 days, blast furnace A will be completely overhauled. Among other things, the refractory lining will be renewed and the complex process and control technology modernised, Kallanish understands. The tapping of the “salamander” was the initial step, during which the remaining pig iron was drained from the blast furnace hearth.

Just over €100 million ($111m) will be invested in this complex construction project which involves Pirson Montage AG as partner. The supply of primary materials to internal processing plants and sister companies during the construction phase will be guaranteed thanks to the pre-production of slab, Salzgitter notes.

This measure will help Salzgitter secure its hot metal base within the context of the incremental transformation towards low-CO2 steel production by 2033, the company says. At a press conference in March, chief executive Gunnar Groebler stated that “this will be the last relining we will ever undertake”.

The company is preparing its technological transition under the project name SALCOS - Salzgitter Low CO2 Steelmaking. “We are gradually abandoning the blast furnace route,” says Gerd Baresch, managing director technology at Salzgitter Flachstahl. “Accordingly, we will be decommissioning one of our blast furnaces as early as 2026.”