As reported by "Metinvest-Mariupol " on its Facebook page, despite # StopCoronavirus and quarantine # spring2020, MMK continues to implement projects to upgrade equipment - preparations are underway for the construction of an air separation plant complex. It will consist of an air separation unit with a liquid oxygen storage and a gasification station.
The capacity of the equipment will be 25 thousand cubic meters of gaseous oxygen per hour.
At the same time, it is specified that the equipment for the project will be supplied by Air Liquide, the world leader in the production of technical gases for industry, healthcare and environmental protection.
At the moment, the French partners have developed the basic engineering of the new oxygen complex, on the basis of which the design documentation is being developed. The procedure for obtaining a building permit and preparation for the implementation of preliminary works at the facility has begun. In parallel, Air Liquide has started manufacturing equipment for ASPs and the first batch of finished parts of the future plant is already being prepared for shipment.
The general contractor is Metinvest-Engineering, whose specialists carry out a range of work to organize and control the design and implementation of construction and installation works, and supply the main process equipment. The complex is planned to be commissioned by the end of 2021.
As reported, "Metinvest " attracted a credit line for 24.4 million euros for up to 11 years to finance the construction of an oxygen complex at MMK im. Ilyich. The credit line is covered by the French export guarantee issued by the export credit agency (ECA) Bpifrance Assurance Export (Bpifrance). Raiffeisen Bank International was the single creditor. The interest rate on the credit line, which matures in July 2030, is set at the 6-month EURIBOR plus margin.
The funds raised will be used to finance the construction of an air separation unit and a gasification station at MMK. The supply of equipment and engineering solutions will be carried out by Air Liquide, the world leader in the production and supply of gases, the contract with which was signed in June 2019.
The general contractor for the project is the engineering company "Metinvest-Engineering ", which implements the group's investment projects from the stage of strategic planning to their implementation.
Earlier, the company's press service explained that the financing strategy of "Metinvest " involves the use of credit lines under ECA guarantees as one of the financing instruments for the Technology Strategy-2030. So, in 2018-2019. "Metinvest " has attracted three lines of credit from leading financial institutions secured by European export credit agencies for a total amount of over 100 million euros.
General Director of "Metinvest " Yuri Ryzhenkov previously expressed gratitude to the agency Bpifrance, Raiffeisen Bank International and Air Liquide for their assistance in the implementation of this project. "For the first time in history, Metinvest has received financing with the longest maturity, covered by an export guarantee from France. Despite the unfavorable outlook for 2020, this will allow the group to meet the growing oxygen demand of MMK due to the expansion of steel production ", - said the top manager then.
In turn, Petra Rauscher, Head of Global Export Financing at Raiffeisen Bank International, also expressed gratitude to Metinvest, Bpifrance and Air Liquide for excellent cooperation.
"This deal once again underlines the strong partnership between Raiffeisen Bank International and Metinvest in long-term financing with the support of European export credit agencies," Rauscher said.
The project provides for the replacement of technologically outdated oxygen units to meet MMK's demand for air separation products as production capacity expands under the Technology Strategy-2030. The amount of investment in the construction of the complex is about $ 78 million.
The capacity of the new air separation plant and gasification station will amount to 25 thousand cubic meters of oxygen, 35 thousand cubic meters of nitrogen and 1.75 thousand cubic meters of liquid oxygen per hour. The infrastructure of the complex includes a liquid oxygen storage and an evaporator.
Construction of a new air separation unit will eliminate the risk of production decline by creating a supply of liquid oxygen and installing a gasification system, while working conditions for employees will comply with the best European practices.
MMK them. Ilyich is part of the Metinvest group, the main shareholders of which are the SCM group of Rinat Akhmetov (71.24%) and Vadim Novinsky's Smart Holding (23.76%), jointly managing them.
