OREANDA-NEWS. December 19, 2012. Today in Moscow, representatives of TUV SUD, the German certifying agency, awarded NLMK with international certificate 50001:2011 “Energy management systems — Requirements with Guidance for Use”. NLMK became the first Russian steelmaker to have its energy resource management system certified for compliance with international requirements.

Over the last five years, NLMK's efforts aimed at enhancing the sustainable use energy resources at its main production site in Lipetsk have helped to reduce the specific energy intensity of steel production by 11.5% y-o-y to 5.86 Gcal/t in 2012 by using higher volumes (86%) of by-product gases from metallurgical processes, as well as by undertaking a number of steps to cut energy costs.

NLMK Group’s energy efficiency improvement program that runs until 2020 includes new investment projects aimed at increasing the efficiency of waste energy utilisation, optimisation of technological processes and equipment upgrades. As a result, the Company’s specific energy intensity will reduce to 5.6 Gcal/t, equaling the BAT (best available techniques) indicator for steel companies with a similar process cycle.

Alexander Starchenko, NLMK Director for Energy & Utilities, said: “International certification is further recognition of NLMK’s efforts to introduce BATs aimed at optimising energy consumption and enhancing the sustainable use of natural resources, and, as a result, to reduce the Company’s environmental footprint.  The Company’s successful certification of compliance with international standards proves the efficiency of the energy management system developed and applied by the Company throughout the process chain."