NLMK Lipetsk, NLMK Group’s flagship site, and the French company Air Liquide, an industrial gas producer, have signed a package of agreements on expanding cooperation. According to the agreements, Air Liquide will construct a cutting-edge air separation unit (ASU) in Lipetsk and purchase assets for producing hydrogen and rare gas concentrates from NLMK. These joint projects will increase the reliability of NLMK’s supply of compressed air and the products of its separation as the company implements a planned 1 million tonne increase in steel production by 2022.
In Lipetsk, Air Liquide will design and build an ASU with a capacity of 34,000 cubic meters of oxygen per hour, as well as a steam turbine and a number of infrastructure facilities. The new outsourced ASU will provide the plant with oxygen and nitrogen. Start-up of the unit will boost the efficiency of NLMK production processes and help reduce costs, thanks to the ASU’s prime energy efficiency performance and gas production technology that does not require additional compressor units. The commissioning of the new equipment is planned for Q2 2023.
