Evraz ZSMK steel plant (НКМК, Металлургический комбинат ЕВРАЗ ЗСМК , ОАО "ЕВРАЗ Объединенный Западно-Сибирский металлургический комбинат", Новокузнецкий металлургический комбинат (до 2003 года Кузнецкий металлургический комбинат), Западно-Сибирский металлургический комбинат, Новокузнецкий металлургический комбинат, ЗСМК, Кузнецкий металлургический завод (predecessor)), also known as ZSMK, Kuznetsk Iron and Steel Works, Novokuznetsk Iron and Steel Works, NKMK, West Siberian Iron & Steel, is a steel plant in Novokuznetsk, Kemerovskaya, Russia that operates blast furnace (BF), basic oxygen furnace (BOF), and electric arc furnace (EAF) technology.
Modern EVRAZ ZSMK steel plant consists of two production sites. The Novokuznetsk Iron and Steel Works (also known as Kuznetsk Iron and Steel Works; NKMK) was the first one to be built. The first pig iron was produced here in 1932. In the same year, the open-hearth furnace, blooming and rail and beam mill were put into operation at the plant. In subsequent years, the plant launched steel production in an electric arc furnace. After the collapse of the USSR, the enterprise acquired modern equipment for steel smelting and closed the outdated blast furnaces. The former NKMK currently has an operating electric arc furnace that produces up to 1.5 million tons of steel per year.[1]
The second asset of the company - the West Siberian Iron and Steel Works (also known as ZSMK) - was launched in 1964. The first pig iron was produced here in 1964, and in 1968 a basic oxygen furnace shop was launched. In 1992, the plant was privatized, and in 2002 it became part of the EVRAZ company group. Since 2011, ZSMK plant has been merged with NKMK, but the name EVRAZ ZSMK has been retained for both plants combined. Now ZSMK includes a coking plant, blast-furnace, steel-smelting and rolling production. Steel is smelted in the basic oxygen furnace shops with a total capacity of 8 million tons of steel per year. The blast furnace has a design capacity of about 4.4 million tons of pig iron.[1] The plant also has an Electric Arc Furnace (EAF) shop.[2] The Evraz ZSMK steel plant is powered by the nearby Zapadno-Sibirskaya power station.
Environmental & safety violations
Evraz ZSMK company paid 65 million rubles in environmental damages in 2024 for polluting Bolshoy Unzas River. The plant discharged wastewater into the Bolshoy Unzas River in excess of certain standards for ammonium, nitrites, nitrates, zinc, manganese, phenols, petroleum products and suspended matter.[3]
In August 2023, an incident occurred at EVRAZ ZSMK in the EAF-2 shop when the ladle suffered a burn-through, and the molten metal spilled into the facility.[4] As a result of the high-temperature exposure from the flames generated by the incident, the crane operator was injured.[5]
EVRAZ has not published consolidated financial results since 2022 due to the lack of an auditor as a result of the sanctions imposed on the company and its shareholders. Thus, current annual production data is not available. In 2022, EVRAZ Group produced 12,800 thousand tons of steel. Revenue in Russia for 2023 amounted to USD 7.7 billion, which is 19% less than the previous year.[6]
To access additional data, including an interactive map of steel power plants, a downloadable dataset, and summary data, please visit the Global Iron and Steel Tracker on the Global Energy Monitor website.
