HIsmelt Corporation

"Together, the team at HIsmelt are proud to be part of a new frontier in iron making technology,"
HIsmelt Managing Director, Duncan Price.

In 2002 an unincorporated joint venture between Rio tinto (60%) US Steelmaker Nucor Corporation (25%) Mitsubishi Corporation (10%) and Chinese steelmaker Shougang Corporation (5%) was formed for the purpose of constructing and operating a commercial scale HIsmelt plant at Kwinana, Western Australia.

The plant will have a nominal production of 800,000 tonnes per annum of high quality pig iron. The location offers excellent port, rail and site infrastructure, and local skills for the construction and operation of the plant. HIsmelt will employ around 320 people in the peak of its two-year construction phase, and will create up to 65 full time jobs when in operation.

The HIsmelt Process has been specially developed to treat iron ore fines with minimum pre-treatment, making the process more flexible in terms of the quality of iron ore it can treat. The end result is a premium quality iron metallic for the steel industry.

HIsmelt is a direct iron making process - in which iron ore fines and/or other iron containing materials and ordinary steaming coals are injected directly into a molten iron bath to produce a quality molten pig iron. It can be considered both as a potential replacement for the blast furnace and as a new source of low cost iron units for the Electric Arc Steel making industry.

HIsmelt (Operations) Pty Limited recognises that excellence in managing health, safety and environmental responsibilities is essential to long-term success. Through effective management practices HIsmelt aims to ensure the health and safety of its employees, contractors and sub-contractors, to minimise any adverse impacts its activities may have on the environment and to make a positive contribution to local community life.

Having undertaken extensive environmental monitoring of the pilot plant site over the past decade, HIsmelt is dedicated to ensuring plan operations comply with the highest environmental regulations and principles both domestically and globally.

To find out more about HIsmelt, please visit www.hismelt.com.