Metallurgical of China : Baosteel Zhanjiang's Blast Furnace No. 2, Designed and Contracted by MCC, is Successfully Ignited and Put into Pilot Production

At 9:58 a.m. on July 15th, 2016, following the successful ignition of Baosteel's Zhanjiang Steel and Iron's Blast Furnace No. 1 on September 25th, 2015, Baosteel's Zhanjiang Steel and Iron Project ushered in another important key node: this time, Blast Furnace No. 2 was successfully ignited and put into pilot production. This marks that all the Phase I works of Baosteel's Zhanjiang Steel and Iron Project have been completed, and it also indicates that Zhanjiang Steel and Iron now has the capacity for an annual output of 9,000,000 tons of steel, thrusting its pilot production and operation into a brand-new stage of acceleration. This will certainly create economic benefits of a larger scale for the development of Zhanjiang Steel and Iron, and drive the irradiation effect of the steel and iron industry chains; it is also sure to give full play to the demonstration effect and make new contributions to promoting the transformation and upgrading of China's Steel and Iron Industry.

The ignition ceremony was attended by Baosteel Group Party Committee Standing Committee Member and Baosteel General Manager Dai Zhihao, Zhanjiang Municipal Party Secretary and NPC Standing Committee Director Wei Hongguang, Zhanjiang Municipal Party Committee Deputy Secretary and Mayor Wang Zhongbing, Baosteel Vice General Manager Zhao Zhouli, Zhanjiang CPPCC Committee President Deng Biquan, MCC Vice President and Board Secretary Xiao Xuewen et al. It was presided over by MCC Party Committee Standing Committee Member & Vice General Manager and Zhanjiang Steel and Iron President, Party Committee Secretary and Chief Engineering Commander Sheng Genghong. The welcome speeches were given by Wang Zhongbing, Zhao Zhouli, Xiao Xuewen, CISDI General Manager Yu Chaohui and Shanghai Baoye Group General Manager Chen Gang respectively.

In his speech, Vice President Xiao Xuewen pointed out that the ignition and pilot production of Baosteel Zhanjiang's Blast Furnace No. 2 is another piece of good news ushered in by Zhanjiang Steel and Iron, and it marks that Phase I of the Zhanjiang Steel and Iron Project has now been comprehensively put into production. Entrusted by President Guo Wenqing, he gave his warm congratulations for the smooth ignition of Blast Furnace No. 2 and expressed lofty respect and gratitude to all the cadres, employees and constructors of Zhanjiang Steel and Iron on behalf of the MCC Group.

Since Blast Furnace No. 1 was put into production, strong competitiveness has been shown, the capacity has been rapidly promoted, all the operation indexes have exceeded expectations, and it has withstood the onslaught of an extra-large typhoon. Practice has proven that the decision to construct Zhanjiang Steel and Iron was correct, and its design and construction quality is perfect. This is the result for which all of Zhanjiang Steel and Iron's cadres, employees and constructors have commonly struggled, and which has drawn the attention and respect of the whole industry.

The MCC Group and the Baosteel Group have a cooperation history of several decades, and both parties have made progress, shared weal and woe, and grown up together, which can be considered the model of cooperation between central enterprises. Baosteel is one of the best and most important clients of the MCC Group and Zhanjiang Steel and Iron gave MCC the greatest support and cordial loving care in the construction process. Fourteen subsidiaries and a construction team of over 20,000 constructers were successively dispatched to Zhanjiang from every region China, where they experienced all kinds of difficulties and challenges in the construction process, and adhered to the belief that 'MCC people build the world with heart' to allow Zhanjiang Steel and Iron's magnificent 'dream works' become a reality in accordance with the five requirements of safety, quality, timeliness, investment control and the construction of a clean government, and this was all done in the simple yet profound MCC spirit of 'Never delaying and never slacking'.

On behalf of the Baosteel Group and Zhanjiang Steel and Iron, Vice General Manager Zhao Zhouli expressed his gratitude to the government departments at all levels of Zhanjiang City, Guangdong Province, and the design, construction, supervision, equipment manufacturing and material supply units in cooperation with Zhanjiang Steel and Iron. He then pointed out that the ignition and pilot production of Blast Furnace No. 2 manifests the efficient and synergetic courage and capacity of all the constructors to dare to strive, and it also demonstrates the 'craftsmen's spirit' of Baosteel and MCC people to innovate boldly and keep improving. From striking in the first pile on May 15th, 2014, to July 15th, 2016, only two years and two months have been spent completing the construction of the whole system of Blast Furnace No. 2; this is over two months shorter than the two-year and four-month construction period of Blast Furnace No. 1, setting a new record in the 'Speed of Zhanjiang Steel and Iron'. Independent integration and independent innovation were comprehensively carried out in the design and construction of Blast Furnace No. 2 so as to guarantee that it would meet all environmental goals including low energy consumption, low material consumption, zero waste and high cyclic utilization rate, realize such requirements as cleaner production and resource saving, be more adaptable for the actual production of Zhanjiang Steel and Iron, and correspond closer with the goal of constructing a green 'dream works'.

On behalf of the Zhanjiang Municipal Party Committee and Government, Mayor Wang Zhongbing expressed his thanks to the Baosteel Group, MCC Group and all constructors. He then pointed out that the comprehensive completion of Phase I of Baosteel's Zhanjiang Steel and Iron Base is an important event with milestone significance for Baosteel to take root on the coast of the South China Sea and start a new undertaking, for Zhanjiang to wholeheartedly dedicate itself to building a high-level industry system and quicken the construction of the central system in the North Gulf Rim, for Guangdong to quicken its industrial transformation & upgrading and promote the revitalization and development of the northwest region of eastern Guangdong, and even for our country to march from a great steel and iron power towards being a powerful nation of steel and iron. At this new starting point, keeping the initial purposes in mind, Zhanjiang will firmly support Zhanjiang Steel and Iron's prosperity and rise in power on Donghai Island, and firmly construct the City into a modern steel and iron industry base with the most advanced technology and the most international competitiveness in our country, and a nation-level circular economy demonstration area.

At the end of the ceremony, General Manager Dai Zhihao announced that Blast Furnace No. 2 was officially ignited. The ignition was carried out jointly by the leaders of the Development District of Zhanjiang, Guangdong, the MCC Group, the Baosteel Group, the Baosteel Corporation, Zhanjiang Steel and Iron, all design, construction and supervision units, suppliers and supporting service units, as well as Zhanjiang Steel and Iron's model workers and staff representatives.

The ignition ceremony was attended by Zhanjiang Municipal Party Committee Standing Committee Member and Executive Vice Mayor Zhao Zhihui, Zhanjiang Municipal Party Committee Standing Committee Member and Development District Party Committee Secretary Xu Shun, Zhanjiang Steel and Iron General Manager and Executive Assistant Commander-in-chief Liu Daide, Zhanjiang NPC Standing Committee Deputy Director and Municipal Party Committee Secretary General Cao Xing, Zhanjiang Economic and Technological Development District Party Committee Deputy Secretary and Management Committee Director Wang Zaihua, Zhanjiang People's Government Secretary General Huang Jie, Dalian Huarui Heavy Industry Group Co., Ltd. President Cong Hong and other related leaders.