Duferco has ordered a new €180mn ($218mn) beam rolling mill plant for its facility in Brescia, Northern Italy from SMS Group. The rolling mill will be integrated with the steel plant. It plans to finish construction and commission the plant in less than two years and ramp-up to a high capacity utilization quickly.
The company is leveraging the latest technology including artificial intelligence and automation to become a lower-cost producer while decreasing its environmental impact. The new mill will be the first in Italy to be powered by renewable energy and will increase the company’s long steel capacity to 1.5mn mt once complete. Forni Industriali Bendotti is providing the walking beam furnace with hydrogen injected burners.
The JV between Duferco and Nucor ends with in early December pending full clearance from the EU Competition Authority. Duferco is the sole domestic producer of steel beams in Italy.
(€1 = $1.18)