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Chinese Steelmaker Acquires Castrip License

According to Castrip, Shagang Group intends to tie a Castrip facility to existing steelmaking furnaces and will use it to make high-strength, thin-gauge sheet in thicknesses ranging from 0.7 to 1.9 mm.

“We are very pleased Shagang is joining the Castrip family of licensees and expanding the use of this technology in markets around the globe," said Castrip president Frank Fisher in a statement.

"This agreement will help move the technology forward at an accelerated rate and enable the Shagang Group to use a much more energy-efficient and environmentally friendly steelmaking process,” he said.

Castrip said the Shagang Castrip facility will be the first outside of North America.

Nucor, which holds a stake in Castrip, employs the technology at its thin-strip casting facilities in Crawfordsville, Ind., USA, and Blytheville, Ark., USA. Last year, Mexican steelmaker TYASA announced plans to build a Castrip facility in Mexico.

Castrip said that in employing the technology, Shagang Group will be replacing more energy-intensive casting and rolling operations, resulting in less energy use and lower emissions – two important goals for China's steel industry. Hot commissioning of the new facility is scheduled for the fourth quarter of 2017.

Estimated capacity is 500,000 tons annually per Castrip line.