JFE Steel’s Chiba to Increase Hot Strip Mill Output Marginally

JFE Steel started trial on Tuesday to increase the hot strip mill output to monthly 400,000 tonnes at Chiba area of East Japan works. The mill increases the direct hot charge rolling ratio from current 25% to 30% to cover bottleneck of reheat furnace capacity. The mill will clear the target by end of December topping record 385,000 tonnes of monthly production in 2006. The hot rolling plant produces monthly 350,000-370,000 tonnes of hot coil, which is full capacity operation for current products mix. The rolling mill has room to increase the output while the reheat furnace capacity has no room for hither output. The works tries to increase the direct hot charge rolling, which is to send high temperature slab directly to hot strip mill from no.3 continuous caster at no.3 steel making shop, in order to increase the monthly output to 400,000 tonnes. The works also tries to find other bottleneck process for further output increase. The hot rolling mill has 3 reheat furnaces, sizing press machine, 3 roughing mills and 7 stands finishing line. The line can operate endless rolling style by using coil box and coil connecting machine between roughing mill and finishing line. East Japan works plans to produce 9 million tonnes of raw steel in fiscal 2007 ending March 2008 compared with 8.57 million tonnes in fiscal 2006. The works already cleared the targeted 8.5 million tonnes of raw steel output under 3-year plan through fiscal 2008. The Chiba area produced 4.29 million tonnes of raw steel in fiscal 2006 and produced steel products with 29% for hot rolled flat steel, 29% of cold rolled flat steel, 24% for coated flat steel, 12% for stainless steel and 6% for large diameter steel pipe.