Preface

Record: The Linuo Machinery project team visited Metalloinvest, Russia’s largest steel and metallurgical group, and held a technical clarification meeting—marking a collaborative trip.

At the invitation of Metalloinvest’s new MHBI project team, in order to gain a deeper understanding of the critical role that the three pieces of equipment awarded under this contract will play in the production lines of Russia’s mining and metallurgical industry, and to ensure the smooth and rapid advancement of the project’s design phase, a delegation from Linuo Machinery—comprising representatives responsible for design and R&D, process engineering, electrical systems, and commercial affairs—set out on an extensive visit on the first day of the Qingming holiday.

First Stop: Russian Mining Research and Development Center

After a 10-hour flight to Moscow, where they successfully met with the client, followed by a 13-hour train ride, on April 6 the Linuo delegation finally arrived safely at the first stop of their trip: Metalloinvest Innovation Center (Russian Mining Research and Development Center) located in Stary Oskol The first meeting was with a delegation of chief experts in automation and control from the R&D Center, who are responsible for automation and control systems, electrical instrumentation, and process management across the Group’s subsidiaries. After each side introduced its respective team, the discussion quickly turned into a lively exchange and presentation. The client expressed strong recognition of our company’s design and R&D capabilities, and the fatigue from the long journey was completely dispelled thanks to the client’s warm welcome and the seamless communication at the R&D Center.

Stop 2: LGOK (Lebedinsky GOK)

On April 7, the Linuo Machinery team arrived at the second stop on their visit: LGOK—Russia’s LGOK (Lebedinsky Mining and Processing Plant). LGOK is the largest iron-ore mining, beneficiation, and hot-briquetted iron (HBI) production complex in Russia and the entire Commonwealth of Independent States, boasting an enormous facility and a grand, imposing layout.

The core production area comprises a super-large open-pit mine, several state-of-the-art ore-processing plants, a world-leading HBI production line, and a fully integrated system of railways, warehousing, and energy infrastructure. Individual facilities are of enormous scale, and the entire production chain stretches for several kilometers. The facility boasts proven iron-ore reserves of 3.8 billion tonnes, with an annual processing capacity exceeding 54 million tonnes and an annual HBI production capacity of more than 4.6 million tonnes. Its open-pit mine, with a width of 5 kilometers and a depth of 600 meters, has been recognized twice in the Guinness World Records.

As soon as one steps through the gate into the factory’s office area, the first thing that catches the eye is a plaque inscribed with a message from President Vladimir Putin: “July 14, 2017—President Putin personally attended the commissioning ceremony for LGOK’s third HBI production line.” At the time, this production line was among the largest hot-briquetted iron projects in the world, and its commissioning boosted LGOK’s annual HBI capacity to 4.5 million tonnes, thereby solidifying its position as a world-leading HBI producer. The signature on the plaque serves as a tangible testament to this national-level industrial milestone and has become a landmark commemorative feature of the LGOK plant.

After Mr. Igor, representing LGOK’s equipment team, completed the stringent and meticulous on-site entry procedures and ensured that all required protective measures were fully in place, he led the Linuo team on a site visit to LGOK’s three compressed-air stations—covering both the facility’s early years and its recently added production line. The dehydration and drying equipment installed on the production line is supplied by a European brand, and the differences in configuration between the original refrigeration compressors and control systems of the dehydrating equipment and their Chinese-made industrial counterparts are strikingly evident. Industry knows no borders; no delivery is trivial. A sense of pride in “Made in China” naturally arose. Following the on-site visit, the two teams convened in the conference room to discuss the insights gained and to address and close each item of the project clarification.

Stop 3: MKS Shared Service Center

On April 8, Mr. Andrey, Head of Metalloinvest’s Power Equipment Systems, led us on a visit to the Multifunctional Shared Services Center (MKS) of the Metalloinvest Group in Stary Oskol. Officially established in January 2017, the MKS serves as the Group’s “back-office hub,” providing support for its subsidiaries. LGOK, OEMK, Ural Steel The building houses standardized, centralized shared services provided by subsidiaries across the entire industrial value chain, and serves as the headquarters for the Group’s technology management team. It is the core industrial cluster of Metalloinvest, located adjacent to the Group’s OEMK (Oskol Electrometallurgical Plant) site, and functions as the Group’s regional headquarters in southern Russia. The street on which it stands is named Prospekt Alekseya Ugarova—Aleksey Ugarov Avenue—in honor of Aleksey Ugarov, the legendary general manager of OEMK. A towering figure in Russia’s steel industry, Ugarov spearheaded the construction and development of OEMK; in 2020, the plant was officially renamed in his honor. This avenue is the central arterial thoroughfare of Stary Oskol.

Communicate with the OEMK project team for the legacy line to address technical challenges item by item.

Our company held a successful meeting with the OEMK project team for the second production line that has just been awarded the contract. Given OEMK’s tight delivery schedule, heavy workload, stringent material requirements, significant challenges in upgrading the existing production-line equipment, and urgent needs to implement robust processes and control systems, we engaged in thorough discussions. Over the past two months, our teams have conducted multiple online meetings, which have now been followed by in-person, face-to-face exchanges. These offline interactions have strengthened mutual trust and coordination, enabling both sides to work together with the ultimate shared goal of ensuring smooth project delivery.

Industry Knows No Borders—Exploring the Future Together

This trip to Russia involved an on-site visit to Metalloinvest (a Russian mining and metallurgical company), during which we conducted a close-up inspection of its Innovation Center R&D facility and LGOK (The world’s largest HBI hot-briquetting iron plant) OEMK (The world’s largest electric-arc-furnace steel plant—high-precision, cutting-edge oil-and-gas and military-grade steel production base) and the Group’s back-office “brain” MKS In the office area, we personally experienced the awe-inspiring grandeur of a world-class heavy-industry hub and gained a profound understanding of this company’s strategic significance in the Russian and global steel industries. We are acutely aware of the immense responsibility that comes with supplying for both projects, and the entire endeavor—comprising new-line supply for the two projects as well as upgrades to existing lines—will demand the Lino team’s unwavering, all-out commitment.