Steel Mills

Primetals to replace two EAFs at US mill
Written by Laura Miller
November 22, 2024
Primetals Technologies announced it will replace two electric-arc furnaces at a steel mill in the US with one more energy-efficient furnace with the latest technology.
The unnamed steelmaker has awarded Primetals a contract to engineer, supply, and start up a 68-ton EAF Ultimate.
The EAF Ultimate, the latest generation of Primetals’ electric furnace offerings, features short tap-to-tap times and a modern eccentric bottom-tapping (EBT) system.
The 750,000-ton-per-year furnace will replace two outdated spout-tapping EAFs.
Additionally, “The manufacturer has taken a pioneering step by selecting Active Power Feeder technology for this project,” London-based Primetals noted.
“With this groundbreaking power supply solution, the company becomes the first steel producer to power an EAF using direct AC-AC conversion utilizing Modular Multilevel Matrix converter (M3C) technology at a medium voltage level, marking a significant advancement in energy efficiency,” it said.
Primetals said power input is managed dynamically, and the melting process is optimized when the feeder is combined with Primetals’ electrode control system Melt Expert.
“This results in reduced energy consumption, lower electrode usage, decreased production costs, and increased process stability, all while meeting utility regulations,” the plant provider stated.
The new furnace is expected to begin operation by the end of 2026.
That’s also around the time new EAFs are slated to start up at ArcelorMittal Dofasco, Nucor Steel West Virginia, and Ternium Mexico, according to SMU’s EAF status table.
The unnamed steelmaker produces medium carbon, high-alloy, and free-cutting steel, according to Primetals, but it’s unclear if it makes flat or long steel products.

Laura Miller
Read more from Laura MillerLatest in Steel Mills

Despite trade chaos, Barry Schneider upbeat on SDI, steel
With 30 years of experience at Steel Dynamics, Barry Schneider reflects on the company and the state of the steel industry.

Algoma Steel seeks CAD$500M in operational support
Algoma Steel applied to Canada’s federal Large Enterprise Tariff Loan (LETL) program for $500 million to support its long-term operations.

SDI concerned with potential Brazil pig iron tariffs
Steel Dynamics Inc. (SDI) executives called a 50% tariff on Brazilian pig iron “concerning,” but think tariffs will be a “mainstay” of trade agreements going forward.

SDI earnings slip in Q2 as trade volatility hits customer orders
SDI profits slipped in second quarter amid trade policy volatility.

Cliffs puts ‘for sale’ signs up after another big quarterly loss
Cleveland-Cliffs lost more than $400 million for the third consecutive quarter but predicted results would improve in the second half of the year. And shares of the Cleveland-based steelmaker surged after company executives said during its Q2 earnings call on Monday that they could make billions by courting foreign investors or selling assets.