Minimills

Electric Arc Furnace EAF-based steelmaking complexes that assure production flexibility, lean organizations, and low transportation costs for local raw-material sourcing and finished products distribution are the essence of the Minimill concept. At the beginning, this concept led to designs for plants with production capacities of 150-200,000 tpy, such as the first Minimill which was built by Danieli in Italy for Stefana group. Over the years, these designs gradually increased in production capability to over 2.9 Mtpy, especially when producing flat products. A significant step forward is represented by the “integrated Minimills” (DRI plants, EAFs, CCMs and rolling mills, all connected through a continuous energy-saving process, by a compact layout) that Danieli started supplying since 2006. This solution is particularly advantageous where scrap is not available and/or low-cost gas is available. In a future these plants might replace the highly capital intensive and less environmental friendly, traditional Blast Furnace integrated plants. Today, thanks to Danieli “Micromill” - a Minimill based on ultra-compact design and extremely low transformation costs - it is possible to produce 250-300,000 tpy of long products with an overall investment per ton typical of a 1.0-1.5 Mtpy Minimill. The relatively low output will assure additional savings in transportation costs, as these “regional mills” will transform local scrap into finished products for local markets.