Outokumpu announced plans to invest EUR 90 million to replace Anneal and Pickle Line No. 2 at the Tornio Works.

Replacement of the anneal and pickle line (AP2-line) is the second step in Outokumpu’s planned approach to the ferritic market. The new line complements the previously announced EUR 13 million investment in batch annealing furnaces in the Tornio Works hot rolling mill, which will start ferritics production in the first quarter of 2007 as planned.

Replacing one of the five existing annealing and pickling lines at the Tornio Works will give Outokumpu 75,000 tonnes of additional capacity for cold rolled products. It will also improve the company’s ability to produce brighter ferritic steel grades and enhance its flexibility to meet customer needs.

With an annual capacity of 300,000 tonnes, the new AP-line will be capable of producing austenitic and ferritic products with minimum set-up time. The new line will replace an existing line, which was first built in 1982. The total value of the investment is EUR 90 million, spread over three years.

After the investment is fully ramped-up, the nominal capacity of the cold rolling plant in Outokumpu’s Tornio Works will be over 1,250,000 tonnes.

Shutdown of the old AP2-line will take place during the fourth quarter of 2008, and production in the new line will start by the end of 2008, with full capacity available by the end of 2009. The company says the shutdown and ramp-up will not have significant impact on the cold rolling plant’s total capacity the in 2008 or 2009.