The president of Russia Vladimir Putin has marked the environmental initiatives of Magnitogorsk Iron and Steel Works (MMK) with a letter, sent to the company’s employees, in the course of the celebrations of the Day of the Metallurgist.
The letter from the Russian president reads: “I thank you for the active part you have played in the preparation of events held throughout the Year of Ecology in Russia”. MMK is one of only five companies in Russia, which have been awarded such a high accolade.
In total, last year MMK implemented several dozen projects for the reduction and prevention of its industrial impact on the environment with a record-high investment of more than 4 billion rubles.
These projects included:
– The reconstruction of the sulfur capture systems (the reduction of overall emissions into the atmosphere by 24.7 thousand tons).
– The modernization of the gas-cleaning unit in the Electric Arc Furnace (the reduction of emissions by 1.8 thousand tons a year).
– The construction of aspiration systems for casting beds in blast furnaces No. 9 and No. 10 (the reduction of dust emissions by a minimum of 190 tons per year).
In 2018 MMK’s environmental investments are set at 5.5 billion rubles, up by nearly 40% YoY. In total, in line with the company’s environmental policy, MMK plans to spend more than 38 billion rubles on the implementation of environmental projects by 2025. Of this, 21.7 billion rubles will be spent on the air quality protection, 10.9 billion rubles – on the recycling of waste and the reclamation of previously mined land, and 5.5 billion rubles – on the water facilities protection.
MMK’s environmental activities are highly valued by the expert community, by government bodies and international organizations. For its 2017 results it was included in the top ten companies for environmental responsibility amongst the mining and metallurgy companies in Russia, an initiative developed by the World Wildlife Fund (WWF). The consistent reduction of harmful impact on the environment and the introduction of the best available technologies are some of the most important elements in MMK’s strategy, which guarantees the long-term and sustainable development of the company. (MMK/Ukrainian metal)