The Bolivian iron ore and steel complex, El Mutún, is developing tests of its different plants without the charge of raw materials.
According to a statement, the company is doing the no-charge tests at the central electric, concentration, pelletizing, steel conversion, and rolling plants.
According to Jorge Alvarado Dias, the no-charge tests started two months ago, under the schedule established for the construction and start-up of the complex, which is expected to be concluded by February 2025, with the conclusion of the direct reduction (DRI) plant.
Dias mentioned that in the central electric plant, serving the entire complex, three of the ten generators are already being tested, while in the rolling plant, the rolling mills, main motors, and ventilation system are already being tested.
He added that in the pelletizing plant the rotary furnace, the cooler, pelletizing discs, and the conveyor belts system are also being tested.
The objective of the tests, he said, is the adjustment of equipment and calibration of the instruments for a smooth start-up of operations.
At full capacity, El Mutún will produce 200,000 mt per year of rebar and wire rod, sufficient enough to reduce the steel imports of the country by half.