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Rautaruukki to Close Raahe Works Sinter Plant by the end of 2011

03/13/2008 - Rautaruukki announced plans to close down sinter plant operations at its Raahe Works in Finland by the end of 2011 as it transitions over to 100% iron pellet feedstock for its blast furnace operations.

Rautaruukki has announced plans to close down sinter plant operations at its Raahe Works in Finland by the end of 2011.
 
Closing the sinter plant—which will significantly reduce emissions at the Raahe Works—is part of the company’s plan to convert to 100% iron pellet feedstock for its iron-making process. The company has a long-term pellet supply contract with LKAB of Sweden.
 
At the Raahe Works sinter plant, which has been in operation at since 1964, limestone and coke breeze are mixed with iron ore concentrate and sintered into lump form or sinter for use in the blast furnaces as a raw material for iron-making. The iron-making process at Raahe Works currently uses a million tonnes of iron pellets and 2.3 million tonnes of iron ore concentrate each year. Once production changes over to the use of iron pellets, the sinter plant will become redundant.
 
Switching over to iron pellets will the Raahe Works to significantly reduce emissions, with carbon dioxide emissions decreasing by 500,000 tonnes a year (10%). The company estimates that dust emissions will be cut by 37% and sulfur emissions will be reduced by 64%.
 
The company said that the switchover to pellets will also cause energy consumption at the Raahe Works to fall by 8% or 1.16 million megawatt hours a year. This is equivalent to the annual energy consumption of around 60,000 small family houses, said Sakari Kallo, Vice President, Hot-Rolled Plate and Strip Products.
 
The company said that people released as a result of closing the sinter plant—which employs around 120—are needed for other jobs in the company. Some 250 people, of whom over 200 are workers, will be retiring from the Raahe Works between 2008 and 2011, said Kallo.
 
The decision to close the sinter plant will also mean additional depreciation of around EUR 1.9 million a year during the next four years, according to the company.