WEST CHESTER, Ohio,
Dec. 4, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- AK
Steel (NYSE: AKS) said today that the reline of the blast furnace
hearth at its Ashland, Kentucky
Works was successful and the blast furnace has returned to full
production following an approximate four week, planned outage for
maintenance work. The outage had been planned to occur in
2015 but was advanced to fully address operational issues that
began earlier this year.
The company said that the Ashland blast furnace is now operating at its
full capacity, which is significantly above pre-outage
levels. In addition to the hearth reline, other routine
maintenance work was also completed on the blast furnace.
"We are very pleased that the Ashland blast furnace is back on-line and
operating well," said James L.
Wainscott, Chairman, President and CEO of AK Steel.
"Completion of this outage helps position us to serve our
customers' needs for years to come."
The previously announced, planned outage began in late October
and was completed in 27 days, compared to the company's initial
estimate of 28 days.
AK Steel said that the outage included capital investments of
approximately $19 million and
approximately $31 million of costs
associated with the planned outage itself and reduced production
levels at Ashland Works in the period prior to the outage. As
part of its fourth quarter of 2014 outlook, the company previously
said it expected to make approximately $20
million in capital investments and incur approximately
$30 million in costs.
The company noted that it had taken steps in advance of the
outage to minimize the potential impact on its customers, including
purchasing additional slabs and building inventory through
increased production at other plants.
AK Steel also operates blast furnaces located at its plants in
Middletown, Ohio and Dearborn, Michigan, as well as electric arc
furnaces (EAFs) at its Butler,
Pennsylvania and Mansfield,
Ohio facilities.
AK Steel
AK Steel is a world leader in the production
of flat-rolled carbon, stainless and electrical steel products,
primarily for automotive, infrastructure and manufacturing,
construction and electrical power generation and distribution
markets. Headquartered in West
Chester, Ohio (Greater
Cincinnati), the company employs approximately 8,000 men and
women at eight steel plants, two coke plants and two tube
manufacturing plants across six states: Indiana, Kentucky, Michigan, Ohio, Pennsylvania and West Virginia. The
company also has interests in iron ore through its Magnetation LLC
joint venture and in metallurgical coal through its AK Coal
Resources, Inc. subsidiary. Additional information about AK
Steel is available at www.aksteel.com.
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SOURCE AK Steel