Cliffs Natural Resources Inc., Cleveland, Ohio, announces that it will invest $700 million for the development of its first hot briquetted iron (HBI) production plant, to be located at a site in Toledo, Ohio. Cliffs selected Midrex Technologies to design, engineer, and procure equipment for the new plant, which will have the nominal capacity to produce 1.6 million tons of HBI per year.
The Midrex process is a direct reduction of iron (DRI) technology. According to the Midrex website, the Midrex Shaft Furnace can use natural gas, or a syngas from coal, or coke-oven gas as its reductant. Plants commonly operate in excess of 8000 hours per year. The Shaft Furnace can process either oxide pellets or lump ores to produce HBI.
“Operation of the Midrex Shaft Furnace is uncomplicated and straight-forward. Iron-bearing material is are introduced into the top of a cylindrical, refractory-lined vessel, where it descends by gravity flow and is contacted by upward flowing reducing gas. The reducing gas, which is primarily hydrogen and carbon monoxide, reacts with the iron oxide to reduce (remove the oxygen content) and carburize the material prior to discharge. From there the product can be discharged as CDRI, HDRI, HBI or any combination simultaneously.”—Midrex website.
Cliffs anticipates breaking ground for the construction of the HBI production plant in early 2018, with the production of commercial tonnage of HBI beginning in mid-2020. Cliffs considers the brownfield site at the Port of Toledo a premier location for development due to its relative proximity to several future customers, as well as its logistics advantages, including affordable natural gas availability and access by multiple rail carriers.
According to Lourenco Goncalves, Chairman, President, and Chief Executive Officer, “Today’s announcement marks a very important strategic milestone for Cliffs as we begin to implement our plans to be the sole producer of high-quality HBI for the EAF steel market in the Great Lakes region. We look forward to the strong margin and earnings potential this new product will generate for Cliffs shareholders.
“We thank Governor John Kasich, JobsOhio, and a number of local partners in the Toledo community for their efforts to help advance this project, including an offer of approximately $30 million in grants and other financial incentives. We will continue to work closely with the State of Ohio through the environmental permitting process.”
Cliffs Natural Resources Inc. is a leading mining and natural resources company. Founded in 1847, Cliffs Natural Resources Inc. is recognized as the largest and oldest independent iron ore mining company in the United States. It is a major supplier of iron ore pellets to the North American steel industry from its mines and pellet plants located in Michigan and Minnesota. Cliffs also operates an iron ore mining complex in Western Australia.
http://www.cliffsnaturalresources.com
