ABB to roll out electric powertrain system for ArcelorMittal Nippon Steel’s new steel mill in Hazira

It’s a sea of red for the Indian markets with Sensex and Nifty declining more than 1% on Wednesday. The index heavyweights HDFC Bank and Reliance Industries have combinedly contributed more than 100 points in the Nifty falls. All the sectors were seen trading in red. However, there was one stock which was seen buzzing in today’s session.

The stock name is ABB India Ltd. The company is an integrated power equipment manufacturer supplying a complete range of engineering, products, solutions and services in areas of Automation and Power technology. The stock is trading with gains of 0.40% and on an intraday basis it had touched a high of Rs 4427.90 on NSE.

So, what’s the buzz in the stock?

ABB is working in partnership with SMS group, a specialist in plant construction, mechanical and electric & automation engineering for the metals industry, to provide all the MV motors and MV drives for ArcelorMittal Nippon Steel’s new hot strip mill in India. The scope also includes a large number of low-voltage (LV) drives. The project at Hazira, an industrial hub in Gujarat, is part of a major expansion of the site, which is already India’s fifth-largest producer of crude steel. When it becomes operational in 2025, the new mill will increase Hazira’s production capacity by around 5.5 million tons per year.

The hot strip mill will roll thick slabs of cast steel into thin strips suitable for industrial customers. ABB is supplying and installing 13 MV drives and 16 large MV motors. These will form the drivetrain for the two key elements of the operation, the roughing mill and the finishing mill. The former receives steel slab at a temperature of around 1.240°C and makes the initial reduction in thickness. The steel will then go to the finishing mill, one of the largest of its kind, where it will be reduced to its final thickness. In addition to the MV equipment, ABB is also supplying 14 LV multidrives line-ups and 256 LV inverters to support auxiliary services.

The well-established direct torque control (DTC) technology embedded in ABB’s drives will deliver a very fast and accurate response to any changes in the load on the motors during the rolling operations. This precision control will ensure the optimal quality of the finished steel product. The multidrive capability of the MV drives will be employed in some parts of the operation to control four motors in parallel, reducing the installation footprint and saving energy.

A major technical challenge for ABB has been the design of the gearless drive system for the roughing mill. This provides greater control over the process while reducing the number of moving parts for increased reliability.

According to SMS group, the expansion of the Hazira plant is a very high-profile project that will enable the future transfer of carbon-neutral steel technology, which is currently under development by ArcelorMittal Nippon Steel. That is why they decided to work in partnership with ABB to utilize its proven expertise in providing reliable, high-performance powertrain solutions for the demanding applications found in steel mills.

Disclaimer: This blog has been written exclusively for educational purposes. The securities mentioned are only examples and not recommendations. It is based on several secondary sources on the internet and is subject to changes. Please consult an expert before making related decisions.