Balakovo Steel Plant

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Balakovo Steel Plant (Металлургический завод Балаково (Russian)), also known as Balakovo Metallurgical Plant; Mini-Mill Balakovo; Balakovo Steel Works JSC; MZ Balakovo, AO; Severstal Balakovo (predecessor); Severstal-Sortovoi Zavod Balakovo AO (predecessor), is an electric arc furnace (EAF) steel plant operating in Bykov Otrog, Saratov, Russia.

Location

The map below shows the exact location of the plant in Bykov Otrog, Saratov, Russia:

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• Location: 2, Metallurgov shosse, Bykov Otrog, Balakovo district, Saratov Region, Russia, 413810
• Coordinates (WGS 84): 51.936009, 47.815910 (exact)

Background

In June 2024, it was reported that Novostal-M, the plant's owner, had reduced liquid steel production due to the financial burden of excise taxes and export duties. It became more profitable for the company to source steel billets from partners rather than relying on scrap metal. It was also mentioned that the company had stopped paying the excise tax on steel, required during production, and had begun purchasing ready-made semi-finished products. Novostal-M continues to work with scrap metal, with HBI (Hot Briquetted Iron) making up 10-15% of its production. However, the sharp increase in scrap prices has become a significant issue. Once built, the new EAF unit will be using 80% of HBI and 20% of scrap. Novostal-M is planning to produce the first steel at the Balakovo plant in 2025, and the first rails by 2028.

In 2019, Rosprirodnadzor fined the plant for pollution. The plant exceeded standards for hazardous waste twofold. The list of harmful substances includes included 70 items, including lead, which has a toxic effect on the environment and is extremely dangerous for the kidneys, spleen and bones. One milligram per liter is enough for the effects to become irreversible.

JSC Severstal-Sortovoy Zavod Balakovo (previous owner) did not pay the fine of 100,000 rubles from Rosprirodnadzor, filing objections in court. However, the judge found the arguments of the environmental organization convincing and did not satisfy the company's claim.

JSC Severstal-Sortovoy Zavod Balakovo has been found guilty of polluting the environment. In addition to fines, it will now have to revise the technology for producing and storing substances that pose a threat to environmental pollution.

Plant Details

Table 1: General Plant Details

Phase	Plant status	Start date	Workforce size
Main plant	Operating	2013	2500
Expansion	Announced	2024	2000

Table 2: Ownership and Parent Company Information

Phase	Parent company	Parent company PermID	Parent company GEM ID	Owner	Owner company GEM ID
Main plant	Novostal-M OOO [80.0%]; ABK Holding AS [10.0%]; Bemsilk Ltd [10.0%]	5046391773 [80%]; unknown [10%]; unknown [10%]	E100000131027 [80%]; E100000131075 [10%]; E100000131160 [10%]	MZ Balakovo, AO	E100000131126

Table 3: Process and Products

Phase	Steel product category	Steel products	Steel sector end users	ISO 14001	Main production equipment	Detailed production equipment
Main plant	semi-finished; finished rolled	square billet; long products (rebar and rod) in bars and bunches, angle bars and channels	building and infrastructure; transport	2022	EAF	1 EAF; electric shaft arc furnace for melting scrap metal and high-quality steel
Expansion	semi-finished; finished rolled	blooms; beam blanks; beams; sheet piles; Z-profiles; rails (up to 150 m); a wide range of profiles	building and infrastructure; transport	–	EAF	1 EAF, vacuum section, a rolling mill, and its own logistics department

Table 4: Crude Steel Production Capacities (thousand tonnes per annum)

*Please see our Frequently Asked Questions page for an explanation of the different capacity operating statuses.

Phase	Capacity operating status*	Electric arc furnace steelmaking capacity	Nominal crude steel capacity (total)
Main plant	operating	1200 TTPA	1200 TTPA
Expansion	announced	1500 TTPA	1500 TTPA

Table 5: Crude Iron Production Capacities (thousand tonnes per annum)

*Please see our Frequently Asked Questions page for an explanation of the different capacity operating statuses.

Phase	Capacity operating status*
Main plant	operating
Expansion	announced

Table 6: Actual Crude Steel Production by Year (thousand tonnes per annum)

Year	EAF Production	Total (all routes)
2020	>0 TTPA	>0 TTPA
2021	1000 TTPA	1000 TTPA
2022	–	–

Articles and Resources

Additional data

To access additional data, including an interactive map of steel power plants, a downloadable dataset, and summary data, please visit the Global Steel Plant Tracker on the Global Energy Monitor website.

Resources

• Company website