Emerging steel markets and their impact on coking coal and coke.

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Emerging steel markets and their impact on
coking coal and coke.
Dr. Kalyan Sen CFRI
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India Govt. thrust on infrastructure projects,
lower interest rates, booming economy The steel
production is expected to grow at rapid pace.
The buoyancy in Indian steel market is a
combination of demand for exports, mainly to
China and a positive outlook in certain
sectors. This will lead to increased demand of
good quality coking coal and Low ash
metallurgical (LAM) coke.
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Estimated Demand of Met Coke

• By 2011-12 India would require 31 million tonnes
  (mt)
• 12.5 mt produced consumed by main producers
• 18.5 mt will be required by secondary steel
  producers out of which 14 mt need to be produced
  by Merchant coke producers.

31 mt of coke is equivalent to 44 mt of washed
coking coal !!
What are the supply sources ?
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Fuel supply chain

• Existing trend (2002-03)
• Import of coke 2.245mt
• Import of coking coal 12.947 mt
• Washery Cleans 8 mt

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Fuel supply chain

• Future projection (2011-12)
• Import of coke 4.5mt
• Washery cleans 8 mt (The output of the
  existing washeries is likely to decline)
• Import of coking coal 30 mt ?

Considering steep increase in price of both coke
coking coal and their availability, the
situation is rather gloomy
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Constraints of price availability
Coke imports in india were 2,782mt in 02-03 out
of which 89 was from China..

• Coke price rise
• Explosion in coke demand in China
• Large rise in Chinese coke production costs
• Gradual erosion of coke capacity out side of
  China
• The rise in coke price coupled with its
  unavailability has become the biggest challenge
  confronting the secondary sector pig iron industry

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Coking coal having good coking properties, low
sulphur and ash contents has become world wide a
costly and rare commodity.

• Additional global sources for long term
  availability
• China USA- envisaged increased production will
  mostly be consumed by the respective countries.
• Indonesia - a meagre amount may be available
• Russia - a lot , but requires major
  infrastructural investment

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Scope for utilsation of Indigenous resources
Area for Improvement
Quality
Quantity
Cost
Culture
Optimisation
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Inferior grade 68
GSI, Jan.2004
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Imperatives for enhancing washed coal production

• Renovation modernisation of existing washeries
  to maximise the output at desired quality with
  further deterioration of feed quality the washery
  output, in the absence of drastic modernisation
  programme , is going to decline.
• Installation of fine coal treatment plant to
  treat the waste slurries the freshly
  generated fines to produce Cleans in the ash
  range 10-14.
• Installation of new washeries to treat the Low
  Volatile NLW coals (LVC coal, if prepared
  judiciously, has the potentiality to offer
  excellent quality coke)

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The challenge of minimising the import dependency
on desired fuel can be met

• by increasing the capacity of washed coal
  production, adoption of innovative coke making
  technology and PCI route.
• by utilising abundantly available non-coking
  coal through adoptation of alternate routes of
  steel making

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Characteristics of LVC(NLW)

• High raw coal ash 35-45
• High Maturity Ro 1.3
• Low volatile matter content 15-20
• High Inertinite content (60-70)
• Poor washability potential

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Beneficiation in existing washeries

• 2-product circuit
• About 70-75 with 40-45 ash with no market outlet

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Beneficiation in existing washeries

• 3-product circuit
• LVCC requires disposal of 20 as reject
• 50 middling with 41 ash (outlet ?)

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Coals of western Jharia coalfields need a
different beneficiation strategy
INTEGRATED MULTI-STREAM BENEFICIATION
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4-Product Circuit

• Cleans (25-30), 17-18 ash
• Cleans II (18-20), 22-28 ash
• Middlings (20-22), 34 ash
• Rejects (28-30), 60-65 ash

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Suggested beneficiation scheme

• Coal crushed to a nominal top size of 100/75 mm
  and screened at lower size, 25/20/13 mm
• Coarser fraction ( oversize) treated in washing
  unit to produce POWER COAL ( 34 ash)
• Finer fraction (undersize) deep beneficiated for
  metallurgical coal of ash 17-18
• Combined rejects (ash 50-55) sent to FBC
  boilers

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For a typical SR - process,
Judicious beneficiation of available coal is a
necessity
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Beneficiation strategy
Category I Non-coking coal (ash 30-40)
Jigging
Cleans 75-80 (ash 25)
Reject (ash 60-65) (FBC boiler)
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Beneficiation strategy ...
Category III LVC coal (ash gt 35)
3-pdt Jig 4-pdt washing User Yld (A)
Yld (A) Total Cls --- 24-27 (17-18)
Steel Jig Cleans 50 (22-24) --
Corex Cleans II --- 18-20 (25-30)
Corex Middling 20-22 (34) 20-22 (33-35)
Power Reject 28-30 (60-65) 25-30 (55-65)
FBC
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Thank You
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Scope for utilsation of Indigenous resources
Area for Improvement
Culture
Quality
Quantity
Cost
Optimisation