OREANDA-NEWS. July 23, 2014. Mechel (NYSE: MTL), one of the leading Russian mining and metals companies, reports the beginning of the certification process for its 100-meter rails intended for general use, produced at Chelyabinsk Metallurgical Plant’s universal rolling mill.

A batch of rails produced at Chelyabinsk Metallurgical Plant was sent to the town of Scherbinka near Moscow for laboratory and field tests at the experimental railway ring of Railway Research Institute JSC.

As per the requirements set in the Certification Register of Federal Railways, the rails’ right to undergo certification was confirmed during preliminary tests that were held at Chelyabinsk Metallurgical Plant by a Russian Railways commission. The plant’s rail products passed preliminary testing on all points and are fully up to Russian Railways demands.

The rails certification batch was produced using a unique technology of heat treatment in an organic polymer solution, which has no analogies in Russia.

The universal rolling mill’s annual capacity is 1.1 million tonnes. Once the mill reaches its project capacity, it will supply up to 400,000 tonnes of rails intended for general use, of high resistance to wear and contact endurance for high-speed railways, as well as rails for use in low temperatures.

“Improving competitiveness of Chelyabinsk Metallurgical Plant's universal rolling mill’s products on the domestic market is one of Mechel Group’s strategic goals. Once our rails pass certification, Russian Railways will be provided rails that are not only of high quality, but are also adapted to use in Russian climate, and will be able to reduce its dependence on imports, which is particularly important in the current economic situation,” Mechel Chief Executive Officer Oleg Korzhov commented.