The flash smelting furnace at the Nadezhda Metallurgical Plant was launched in record time after major repairs, the press service of Norilsk Nickel reports.
"Flash smelting furnace No. 2 at the Nadezhda Metallurgical Plant, which was practically built anew, produced the first batch of matte," the company said in a statement.
"Previously, repair work of this scale took up to 90 days. This time, repairmen and plant specialists from Norilsk completed the job in less than 60 days."
As noted by the company, the furnace was essentially completely rebuilt using technologies developed specifically for Norilsk Nickel by Russian engineers. This means that the company was able to quickly adapt to the challenges and restrictions that arose from the cessation of equipment imports from foreign suppliers.
"Previously, such major repairs were carried out under the supervision of foreign colleagues. Now we have carried out this work independently, relying on our own experience. As a result, we have significantly increased production efficiency: the capacity of the furnace for processing concentrate has increased by 25%," said Nikolay Utkin, senior vice president of Norilsk Nickel and head of the Norilsk Division.
The work was carried out using modern technologies: repairmen were assisted by hydraulic hammers, robotic destructors and lifting mechanisms such as spider cranes. Plasma cutters were used to cut metal structures. The total number of personnel involved in the repair exceeded 3,000 people.
Theodor Lisovoy, Editor in Chief, Rough&Polished
