Upgrade puts steel maker out in front
By Zou Huilin (China Daily)
Updated: 2004-05-10 08:45

Baosteel Group's Shanghai No 1 Iron & Steel Co Ltd (BGYG) possesses the world's top carbon steel hot rolling technologies, after completing the first phase of a quality stainless steel project.

The upgrade cost 11.78 billion yuan (US$1.42 billion). Construction started at the end of September in 2000 and took only 30 months to complete.

Li Rongrong, chairman of the State-owned Asset Supervision and Administration Commission, said BGYG's stainless steel project was one of several key ventures in the pipeline.

"The former State Economic and Trading Commission listed the project among the State's key technical revamping projects," he said.

After the completion of the first-phase, BGYG has the newest 1780 millimetre hot rolling production line, which allows an annual production capacity of 2,570,000 tons of steel, including 720,000 tons of stainless steel on average.

Baosteel President Xie Qihua said: "The completion of the first-phase project also symbolizes an important step of turning Shanghai into the world's leading production base of premium stainless products."

Li said BGYG's development has pushed China's stainless steel manufacturing technology to the forefront internationally, which will help alter the nation's long-term dependence on stainless steel imports.

Meanwhile, the company has the most advanced stainless and carbon steel hot rolling production line in the world, according to experts.

Jiang Weimin, president of the Shanghai Metallurgical Design and Research Institute, revealed that Baosteel absorbed the most advanced technologies from seven of the world's top steel manufacturing and related companies, and then created the newest hot-rolling process technologies.

"The newest technologies guarantee the (production) line can produce both stainless and carbon steel with smooth process flows and high-levels of automatic control, saving energy and protecting the environment," he said.

Li said BGYG's second phase of the stainless steel project has just started.

When completed, BGYG will further restructure the product mix of China's steel industry, promoting the reform and development of State-owned enterprises.

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