Voestalpine announced that it has frozen the evaluation project for examination of a new steel site on the Black Sea.

The release said that the decision regarding the possible location has been deferred indefinitely in view of the recessive development anticipated in 2009 and beyond this the uncertainty for the cyclical trend for subsequent years.

Voestalpine said that “The four possible locations in Bulgaria, Romania, Turkey and Ukraine, which were identified during the evaluation project, will be examined again on reactivation of the project. The activities started during the course of securing a potential site in Constanta will be abandoned. These activities were started as it was not possible to secure the plot in any other manner due to the legal framework in Romania. As the decision has been postponed indefinitely securing of the land will not be pursued any further and the options acquired will not be exercised by voestalpine.”

The Conseil de la Concurrence of French has imposed a EUR 301.78 million fine on French subsidiaries of ArcelorMittal active in steel distribution.

This is the result of an investigation started in 2004 by the DGCCRF (Direction Générale de la Concurrence, de la Consommation et de la Répression des Fraudes) into historical anticompetitive practices in the steel distribution sector in France which started in mid 1999.

ArcelorMittal takes matters of this nature extremely seriously and has a rigorous global compliance programme in place to combat anticompetitive practices.

Based on its initial review of the Conseil de la Concurrence's decision, ArcelorMittal expects to make an appeal. At this time the Company has no further comment to make on the situation.

Need to make the hot metal costing in various countries


Item Factor Unit Unit cost Fixed Variable Total
Iron ore 1.63 MT 130 212 212
Iron ore transport 1.63 MT 7 11 11
Coking coal 0.7 MT 350 245 245
Coking coal transport 0.9 MT 20 18 18
Steel Scrap 0.09 MT 400 36 36
Scrap transport 0.09 MT 40 4 4
Oxygen 210 M 3 0.09 19 19
Ferroalloys 0.011 MT 2500 28 28
Fluxes 0.56 MT 40 22 22
Refractory 0.011 MT 700 8 8
Miscellaneous 5 10 15
Electricity 0.129 MWH 70 1 8 9
Labor 0.5 Man HR 30 4 11 15
By products credit -50 -50
Hot metal costing 10 581 591
In USD per tonne

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The Gupta period Delhi Iron Pillar near Kutub Minar at New Delhi in India is testimony to the high level of skill achieved by the ancient Indian iron smiths in the extraction and processing of iron. This Pillar has attracted the attention of corrosion technologists because it has withstood corrosion for the last 1600 years.
The presence of relatively high phosphorus with 0.25% in the forge welded Delhi Iron Pillar plays a major role in its excellent corrosion resistance. The presence of phosphorus leads to the formation of a protective passive film on the surface, which provides the Pillar its exceptional corrosion resistance properties.
In the normal steel making process, the phosphorus content is controlled to be less than 0.05% because phosphorus segregation to grain boundaries reduces ductility of steel.
A detailed study has been done by Professor Dr R Balasubramaniam of the Materials and Metallurgical Engineering Department of Institute of Technology of Kanpur India to understand possible industrial applications of phosphoric irons aiming to render the phosphoric irons ductile and locate a modern application wherein the corrosion resistance of phosphoric irons could be put to good use.
The findings indicate excellent properties for highly corrosion resistant rebars for use in reinforcement of concrete especially in chlorides atmospheric conditions, prevailing on the coastal areas.