Steelmakers eye PCI coal as capacity set to rise via BF-BOF route

Coal Insights Bureau

Absence of quality coking coal from domestic sources and limited sources of coking coal in the international market have put the focus of steelmakers on Pulverized Coal Infection (PCI) in blast furnace as more and more capacity addition in steelmaking is happening through the BFBOF route.

Higher grade thermal coal pulverized and charged into blast furnace reduces consumption of coking coal in a corresponding manner.

“PCI is important from steelmakers’ perspective as the coal can be used directly in the blast furnace in the pulverized form, a direct one-to-one replacement of the costly coke. We have also successfully blended PCI coal with imported coal by up to 5 percent to get the required property in coke ovens,” Arun Kanti Bagchi, Director (Projects) and Additional Charge of Director (Operation), said at the Indian Coal Market Conference 2023.

With very limited mining resources of steel-making grade coking coals in India, there is huge dependency of nearly 90 percent on imports.

India was the largest importer of both coking coal and low ash metallurgical coke in 2022.

While import of coking coal at 56 mt remained more or less stagnant, import of PCI Coal rose 7 percent year-on-year in 2022 to 13.4 mt shipments of met coke jumped 36 percent to 3.36 mt.

“There is a need to increase coal injection (PCI) and reduce coke rate in BF,” said said S K Haldar, consultant, Rawmet Resources Pvt Ltd at the conference.

SAIL looks to broaden PCI coal sourcing

Steel Authority of India Ltd (SAIL), the largest Indian steel producer, in a bid to broaden its supplier base, has floated Expression of Interest (EOI) from overseas PCI coal producers and suppliers of PCI coal.