NLMK replaces Evraz as Russia’s largest steelmaker

Russia’s Novolipetsk Steel (NLMK) has become the country’s largest steel producer based on 2012 output results from its domestic facilities, after investing $2 billion to boost production.

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NLMK displaces Evraz as the country’s top steelmaker. It previously ranked as fourth-largest producer.

NLMK, which also has operations in the USA and Europe, made 13.99 million tonnes of crude steel at its Russian facilities last year, up by 24.5% compared with 2011.

Total production in 2012 stood at 14.92 million tonnes of crude steel, up by 25% year-on-year.

The boost in production has come on a $2 billion investment to increase domestic capacity by 3.4 million tpy to 14.4 million tpy, with the commissioning of a new blast furnace in 2011.

Magnitogorsk Iron & Steel Works (MMK) is now Russia’s second-largest producer. Its production complex in the country made 12.25 million tonnes of crude steel last year, up by 4.5% from 2011.

MMK was also the second-largest producer in 2011.

Output at Evraz’s Russian facilities have seen the company fall to third-largest steelmaker with domestic production of 11.68 million tonnes of crude steel in 2012, down by 4% compared year-on-year.

Severstal is the fourth-largest producer, from third-largest last year, with domestic crude steel output of 10.55 million tonnes in 2012, down by 7% year-on-year.