RSP coke oven complex begins production

Rourkela Steel Plant (RSP), a unit of Steel Authority of India Ltd (SAIL), has achieved a major milestone with the commencement of production from its coke ovens battery complex.

The coke dry cooling plant (CDCP), coal handling plant as well as coal chemicals unit also became operational concurrently. The total investment in this entire complex is around Rs 1,400 crore.

The new battery, which is second of its kind in SAIL, is top charged and has computerized heating control system (COHC). The seven metre tall battery of 67 ovens will produce 0.768 tonne of gross coke per year. Congratulating the RSP team, SAIL chairman C S Verma said, “With the start-up of this new battery at RSP, SAIL has reaffirmed its commitment for environment friendly coke making through adoption of CDCP and other pollution abatement systems.”

The commencement of production at the coke ovens battery complex is also a major milestone towards integrated commissioning of RSP modernization wherein the new state of the art 4,060 cubic metre capacity blast furnace, the largest in the country, is also expected to be commissioned within one month.

RSP is all set to double its capacity from the current level of two million tonne per annum (mtpa) to 4.5 mtpa of hot metal on completion of on-going modernisation and expansion with commensurate increase in crude steel and saleable steel capacity. Two more key units- the new sinter plant and the raw material circuit of ore bedding and blending plant Phase-II have already been made operational and are in the process of stabilisation. Test and trial runs of new units like blast furnace-5, power blowing station and new caster are in progress and the units are likely to be put into operation soon.