OREANDA-NEWS. December 15, 2009. EuroChem is starting construction on Russia’s first melamine plant. A shipment of processing equipment produced by Switzerland-based Bertrams Heatec has been delivered to EuroChem subsidiary Nevinnomyssky Azot (Nevinnomyssk, Stavropol Territory), the future site for this one-of-a-kind plant .

The salt melting unit delivered to the site is a heavy, oversized piece of cargo. The flame heater component alone weighs 100 tons and is 15 meters long. To deliver it to Nevinnomyssky Azot, the heater was loaded onto a special 10-axle platform and towed to the site. The equipment has passed certification tests and received a GOST R certificate of compliance with Russian standards. The equipment will be installed after the initial phase of construction is completed.

The melamine plant has an expected capacity of 50,000 tons per year and the first batch of high-quality and profitable product is will be produced in the first half of 2011.

This is a large-scale project, both in terms of RUR6 bn in capital expenditures and in its significance to the economy, i.e. the ability to satisfy domestic melamine demand once the plant reaches its design capacity.

In choosing the most suitable production technology, EuroChem considered both financial results and environmental safety. In the end, the German company Lurgi was chosen, being one of the five main melamine production technology license holders. The product will be produced under low pressure, thus minimizing costs and ensuring the environmental safety of the process. When the new facilities are commissioned, aggregate emissions will be reduced by 40 tons per year.

About melamine. Melamine is a fine white crystalline powder, first synthesized in the 1950s as a result of heating dicyandiamide. Modern melamine plants use urea as raw material. Melamine is a valuable raw material in the production of environmentally friendly, highly durable, chemical-, heat-, moisture- and wear-resistant plastics, varnishes and glues. Melamine is used in the production of fire-resistant coatings and items, treated lumber and plywood, plastics, paper, textiles, varnishes and paints, molding compounds (tableware, window-sills, ash-trays, buttons, pens and various device casings), etc.