Dnipro Metallurgical Plant (DMZ, formerly Dniprokoks), a part of DCH Steel of businessman Aleksandr Yaroslavsky’s DCH group, did not produce rolled products in January this year, while in January 2023 it produced 8.8 thousand steel products.
According to information in the corporate newspaper DCH Steel on Thursday, rolling mills PC-1 and PC-2 did not roll metal in January, finalizing and shipping products manufactured in December last year. Thus, in January, the company shipped 3.7 thousand tons of rolled products and 22.9 thousand tons of metallurgical coke to customers.
It is also specified that the main and auxiliary equipment is being repaired in the shops, and the next rolling campaign will start at the last decade of February at the Rolling Shop No. 2.
In addition, it is reported that the production of metallurgical coke in January-2024 increased by 64.4% compared to the same period in 2023 – up to 22.7 thousand tons.
DMZ continues to restore the masonry of coke ovens using the ceramic surfacing method.
As reported, in 2023, the plant increased its rolled metal output by 86.2% compared to 2022, up to 105.6 thousand tons, and coke output by 38.5%, up to 292.7 thousand tons.
In December last year, the plant produced 5.2 thousand tons of rolled steel, down 35% month-on-month. Coke production decreased by 6% to 23.9 thousand tons in November 2023.
In 2022, the plant reduced rolled steel production by 74.2% compared to 2021, to 58.4 thousand tons, and coke production by 56.3%, to 211.3 thousand tons.
DMZ specializes in the production of steel, pig iron, rolled products and products made from them. On March 1, 2018, DCH Group signed an agreement to buy Dnipro Metallurgical Plant from Evraz.
Zaporizhkoks PJSC, one of Ukraine’s largest producers of coke products, a part of Metinvest group, in January-April this year increased blast furnace coke production by 48.7% in comparison with the same period of the last year – up to 282.6 thousand tons from 190 thousand tons.
According to the company, in April-2023 it produced 71.3 thousand tons of blast-furnace coke, whereas in April-2022 it was 52.7 thousand tons (a 35.4% increase).
“The increase in production levels in April 2023 compared to the same period of the previous year is due to the withdrawal of production facilities from forced hot mothballing caused by full-scale military actions on the territory of Ukraine,” the press release explains.
As it was reported, in January-March 2023 “Zaporozhkoks” increased the production of blast-furnace coke by 74% in comparison with the same period last year – up to 211.3 thousand tons from 137.3 thousand tons, including 72.8 thousand tons in March, while in March 2022 – 4.1 thousand tons.
“Zaporizhkoks” in 2022 decreased the production of blast-furnace coke by 11.9% compared to 2021 – to 737.4 thousand tons, including 70.8 thousand tons of coke produced in December.
“Zaporizhkoks” produces about 10% of coke produced in Ukraine, owns a full technological cycle of processing of coke products. It also produces coke gas and pitch coke.
“Metinvest is a vertically integrated mining group of companies. Its major shareholders are SCM Group (71.24%) and Smart Holding (23.76%) that jointly manage the company.
Metinvest Holding LLC is the managing company of Metinvest group.
The coke-making division of the Kametstal plant of Metinvest Mining and Metallurgical Group (formerly Dneprovsky Coke Chemical Plant, DKHZ, Kamenskoye, Dnipropetrovsk Region) has resumed operations after being forced to stop due to power supply restrictions as a result of massive enemy shelling.
According to the company’s press release, coke oven batteries No.1 and No.5 resumed their work at the beginning of 2023 and started producing blast furnace coke.
It is noted that during the forced downtime the subdivision specialists systematically prepared the equipment for resumption of work. One of the important stages – preparation for putting into operation the equipment evacuated to “Kametstal” from Avdiivka Coke Plant (ACP), which is in cold storage because of combat operations.
At Metallurgical Plant the project was realized, directed to the delivery and preparation for work in coke-chemical division of the quenching car, earlier exploited at PJSC “AVDIIVKA COKE”. The equipment is intended for transportation of hot coke after its dispensing from coking chambers to the quenching section and then to the sorting section, where coke is distributed by fractions.
According to the report specialists of “Metinvest-Promservice”, who carried out dismantling and the following cleaning of quenching car, took part in project realization together with workers of Kametstal and Avdiivka coke-chemical plant. Acquired equipment makes it possible to create a reserve for the working car and provides for its repair to improve reliability and safety of operation.
“Resumption of coke production is a solid foundation for blast furnace production and efficient operation of the metallurgical plant as a whole. Kametstal’s coke specialists are working selflessly and professionally to bring the equipment up to the required technological parameters in January. We also successfully prepared for operation a coke quenching car from AKHZ,” said Deputy Director of Production for Coke and Chemical Division Roman Puris, who is quoted by the press service.
At the moment, among other things, production of ammonium sulfate is resumed in the subdivision, desulfurization shop, and in the near future the benzene department is going to start working. Thus, the whole technological chain of coke-chemical production at Kametstal will be up and running, the statement explains.
“Kametstal” was created on the basis of PJSC “Dneprovsky Coke Chemical Plant” (DCCP) and the CEC of PJSC “Dneprovsky Metallurgical Plant” (DMK).
According to the report of the parent company of Metinvest Group for 2020, Metinvest B.V. (Netherlands) owned 100% of DKHZ shares.
In January-November of this year, Ukrainian coke and chemical plants reduced production of metallurgical coke with 6% moisture content by 1% compared to the same period last year, to 8.731 million tonnes.
As the Ukrkoks association of coke and chemical enterprises (Dnipro) told Interfax-Ukraine, in November 727,000 tonnes of coke were produced.
Director General of Ukrkoks Anatoliy Starovoit told Interfax-Ukraine that in November and December the country’s coke and chemical enterprises operate at approximately the same load.
“There are slight fluctuations in production, when one battery is removed, the other is introduced, but in general these are minor changes,” the agency’s interlocutor stated.
According to him, the share of import coking coal supplies to coke and chemical plants amounted to 71.9% over 11 months of 2021, while over 11 months of 2020 – 72.7%.
“In total, in January-November of this year, 11.834 million tonnes of coal and concentrate were supplied to coke and chemical plants, including coal of Ukrainian production – 3.32 million tonnes, and 8.5 million tonnes of imported coal. In particular, 5.4 million tonnes of coal and concentrate were imported from the Russian Federation, 2.3 million tonnes from the USA and Canada, 711,000 tonnes from Kazakhstan, and the rest in small volumes – from Poland, the Czech Republic and other countries,” Starovoit said.
At the same time, the CEO reported updated data for 2022, according to which 14.2 million tonnes of coking coal will be required to smelt 21.5 million tonnes of cast iron. “On average, 460 kg of coke per tonne of cast iron,” the agency’s interlocutor said.
Earlier it was predicted that for the smelting of 21.5 million tonnes of cast iron in 2022, some 9.9 million tonnes of metallurgical coke, or 11.5 million tonnes of gross coke, would be required, for which 15.7 million tonnes of coking coals would be needed, including 12 million tonnes of imported coal.
“We have adjusted the demand for coke to 460 kg per tonne of cast iron, whereas earlier we used about 500 kg per tonne of cast iron,” Starovoit said.
According to recent data, over 11 months, in particular, Avdiyivka Coke and Chemical Plant reduced coke output by 9.7% compared to January-November 2020, to 2.417 million tonnes (224,000 tonnes were produced in November), Azovstal – by 9.8%, to 1.111 million tonnes (97,000 tonnes), Dniprovsky Coke and Chemical Plant – by 6.3%, to 505,000 tonnes (43,000 tonnes), Dniprokoks increased production by 10.7%, to 526,000 tonnes (51,000 tonnes), and Zaporizhkoks decreased production by 0.8%, to 887,000 tonnes (75,000 tonnes). Kharkiv Coke and Chemical Plant is idle. Coke production at ArcelorMittal Kryvyi Rih increased by 10%, to 2.640 million tonnes (188,000 tonnes), and at Pivdenkoks – by 7.7%, to 645,000 tonnes (50,000 tonnes).
Ukrainian coke plants in January-July of this year increased the production of metallurgical coke with a 6% moisture content by 2% compared to the same period last year, to 5.749 million tonnes.
The Ukrkoks association of coke and chemical enterprises (Dnipro) told Interfax-Ukraine that in July 826,000 tonnes of coke were produced.
The director general of Ukrkoks, Anatoliy Starovoit, told Interfax-Ukraine that the enterprises continue to work at the request of metallurgical plants, satisfying them with coke in full, taking into account imports.
According to him, coke chemical plants are provided with coking coal for production programs.
According to Ukrkoks, in 2020 coke plants reduced the production of metallurgical coke with a 6% moisture content by 3.9% compared to 2019, to 9.66 million tonnes. The enterprises were supplied with 27.2% of domestic coal and concentrate and 72.8% of imports. In general, 3.618 million tonnes of raw coal and concentrate of domestic production were supplied to the coke plants over the year, some 9.675 million tonnes were imported. In general, 13.293 million tonnes of coal were supplied to the plants, including 5.202 million tonnes imported from the Russian Federation, 3.523 million tonnes from the United States and Canada, 873,300 tonnes from Kazakhstan, and 76,000 tonnes from Poland.
JSC Dniprotiazhmash (Dnipro), a large enterprise of heavy engineering, part of the scientific and production group Dniprotechservice, in 2020 plans to increase the number of products shipped for the coke industry by 24% (or 153 units) compared to 2019, to 795 units, Viacheslav Pronsky, the marketing director of the enterprise, has said.
“We’ve mastered the equipment for coke oven batteries relatively recently – we had to do it after the related plant Slovtiazhmash in Sloviansk (Donetsk region), also part of Dniprotechservice, unfortunately, did not survive the conflict time, a particularly acute period of events in the east of Ukraine in 2014-2015. We have adopted technologies, documentation and expertise from our colleagues, and for the fifth year we have been producing this equipment,” he told the Interfax-Ukraine agency.
According to the top manager, in 2020 Dniprotiazhmash intends to increase the share of coke-chemical equipment in the total sales of equipment for the mining and metallurgical sector from 23% in 2019 to 25% (or about UAH 186 million) in the current year, which was also facilitated by the shipment of two coal loading machines worth more than UAH 30 million each one.
“Our customers are almost all coke-chemical enterprises in Ukraine (in Avdiyivka, Dnipro, Zaporizhia, Kamyanske, Kryvy Rih and Mariupol) and Kazakhstan (Temirtau), as well as several enterprises in Russia. This year, negotiations have begun, and we are already participating in tenders for coke-chemical products for Western consumers, in particular for all of ArcelorMittal’s assets in Europe,” Pronsky said.
