Primetals Technologies has received an order from Naveena Steel Mills (Private) Limited to supply a continuous billet casting machine and a bar rolling mill for a new mini mill in Port Qasim, Karachi. The billet caster will be supplied by Concast (India) Ltd., a Primetals Technologies group company.
The new mini mill will produce around 270,000 metric tons of reinforcing steel (rebars) per annum with diameters ranging from 8 to 40 millimeters. Diameters up to 12 millimeters will be rolled in multi-slit mode to improve productivity. As a special feature of the new plant, billets will be directly charged in hot condition to the rolling mill, which will provide significant energy savings. An inline induction furnace placed before the first rolling stand will serve to equalize the billet temperature, providing the seamless integration of the caster and rolling processes. Commissioning is scheduled to start in the second quarter of 2019.
The continuous casting machine consists of two strands, with provisions made to add a third strand in the future. The caster has a curved tube mold, and is a multiple-radius machine, with a basic radius of 6 meters and a second radius of 11 meters. Concast (India) is responsible for designing, engineering and manufacturing of ladle support, tundish support, mold and oscillator, straightener segments, secondary cooling, dummy bar system as well as pusher and cooling bed. Concast (India) will also supply the basic automation (level 1) and HMI system.
The billets will be hot charged to the rolling mill, which will produce rebars with diameters ranging from 8 to 40 millimeters. In order to increase the productivity of the plant, bars with diameters between 10 and 12 millimeters will be rolled in two-slit mode, and those with diameter 8 millimeters in three-slit mode.
