An explosion has occurred at coke battery No. 1 at the Gijón plant of ArcelorMittal Spain, with the producer halting its coke production after the incident, according to local media reports.
The reports indicate that, as a result of an overfeeding of coke oven gas, an explosion took place at the battery No. 1 and a fire broke out which was shortly brought under control. Moreover, the two coke batteries at the facility were shut down, and all employees, including those injured, were successfully evacuated.
The company expects that its coke output or production at its blast furnaces and other facilities will not be affected by the incident, though the production of its rolling mills that are fed by coke oven gas may be delayed or these units may be temporarily shut down.