Media Type: Active

LIBERTY Galați has for the first time exported 50,000 tonnes of blast furnace slag, a by-product of the steel making process carried out at the plant, so that it can be converted into very low carbon cement at a specialist factory in France.

A ship loaded with granulated blast furnace slag, which is produced in LIBERTY Galati’s own facilities through the processing of hot liquid slag, has been sent to a prestigious cement manufacturer in France. That company operates an innovative technology which uses slag, clay and plaster in a kiln and clinker-free production process. The new process is environmentally protective as it does not involve the extraction of limestone, does not release gases into the atmosphere and – eventually – reduces the carbon footprint of the cement by 80%.

The classic cement-making process uses a rotary kiln where the raw materials are heated up to 1,450 degrees Celsius, which also generates the clinker by-product, largely responsible for the carbon footprint of the cement.

LIBERTY Galați produces about half a million tonnes of blast furnace slag yearly. 

Visit the LIBERTY Steel Group website to read the full media release.

LIBERTY Steel Group has appointed Aida Nechifor as the General Director of its LIBERTY Galaţi plant in Romania. Aida, who has worked at the plant for more than 20 years, is the first woman to lead the plant in its 55 year history as well as being the first woman to lead any major Romanian steel plant.

She will also have management responsibility for LIBERTY Skopje, a downstream site in North Macedonia.

Aida, who was previously the plant’s Chief Financial Officer and a member of the Management Committee since December 2018, joined the Galaţi steelworks in 2001. She initially joined as an economist before leading teams across sales, accounting, financial reporting, planning and analysis functions. She is a graduate of the Economic and Business Administration Faculty of “Alexandru Ioan Cuza” University in Iasi.

Visit the LIBERTY Steel Group website to read the full media release.

LIBERTY Steel Group, part of Sanjeev Gupta’s sustainable industry leader GFG Alliance, today announces that it has strengthened its Board with the appointment of Denise Timns as an executive director and Monica Middleton as a non-executive director.  This continues LIBERTY’s efforts to broaden the expertise of its senior management team as it continues its strong growth worldwide.

Read the press release on LIBERTY Steel Group website

GFG Alliance has finalised the purchase of the hydro energy-powered Tasmanian Electro Metallurgical Company (TEMCO) smelter in Bell Bay in northern Tasmania, a significant step forward in its pursuit to be self-sufficient in the supply chain.

LIBERTY Steel, part of sustainable industry leader GFG Alliance, has committed to a programme of new investments at its South Yorkshire GREENSTEEL production hub at Rotherham to supply the transport, defence, and construction sectors as part of the UK government’s Build Back Better plan.

The investments, totalling more than £60m, will remove production bottlenecks at its electric arc furnace (N-Furnace) and small bloom caster in Rotherham, helping the business to double existing steel output to 1 million tonnes per annum (mtpa).

LIBERTY will launch a public tender to upgrade its N-Furnace for increased scrap steel melting, make upgrades to Thrybergh Bar Mill and install a new Rod Block to produce wire rod and de-bar in coil.

The programme will boost supply of sustainably-produced reinforcing bar “GreBar” for schools, hospitals, houses, energy facilities and transport links as part of the UK government’s £100bn infrastructure spending plan.

LIBERTY’s production increase will reduce the UK’s reliance on imported steel, helping to strengthen the UK supply chain and secure high-value jobs.
The new initiatives follow hot on the heels of the first shipments of GreBar from Thrybergh targeted at UK infrastructure projects such as HS2.

LIBERTY aims to partner with a rebar fabrication company onsite for GreBar production.

Read the full media release on the LIBERTY Steel Group website.

LIBERTY Powder Metals, part of sustainable industry leader GFG Alliance, has started commercial production at its high-tech new Teesside powder metals facility, targeting fast-growing demand from the advanced manufacturing and 3D printing industries.

LIBERTY Powder Metals will produce a range of stainless steel and nickel superalloy powders for precision components in demanding sectors such as automotive, aerospace and engineering, the premium end of the global powder metals market already worth more than £2bn a year.

The cutting-edge powder production process cuts carbon emissions by 85% compared with the traditional steel route*, part of LIBERTY Steel’s CN30 strategy that will make the company carbon neutral by 2030.

Minute spherical powder particles are processed to the highest specifications in a vacuum induction argon gas atomiser, the only one of this kind in the UK, with a unique anti-satellite facility to increase productivity.

The landmark is the culmination of a two-year collaboration with the Tees Valley Mayor Ben Houchen and the Combined Authority, which provided £4.6mn of funding, and the Materials Processing Institute, which housed the atomiser beside its own research facilities. Atomising Systems Ltd and Consarc Engineering have worked closely on equipment design.

LIBERTY Powder Metals’ General Manager, Simon Pike, said: “This has been a great achievement amid unprecedented challenges from the Covid pandemic. The resolve and resilience of our team and our contractors to overcome supply chain constraints has been invaluable.

Read the full media release on the LIBERTY Steel Group website.