Chongqing Iron & Steel (Chonggang) restarted its No.1 2,500-cubic-metre blast furnace on 18 May following refurbishment, Kallanish notes.

Work began on the furnace on 1 April, and lasted 48 days. The company's iron production decreased by 200,000 tonnes over the period. Following the refurbishment, the blast furnace is capable of producing 2.34 million tonnes/year of iron. Its material consumption rate is expected to lower by -2.7% compared with that in 2019 following the maintenance.

One of its bar rolling lines has also just completed a period of maintenance, which also started on 1 April. This resulted in a 50,000t reduction in bar production.

The steelmaker’s first-quarter net profit slumped by -97.2% year-on-year to CNY 4.17 million ($587,035). Chonggang has also had to deal with a major environmental issue. The Central Environment Inspection Group discovered that the company had stacked almost 300,000 tonnes of solid waste just 800 metres away from the Yangtze River. They have instructed Chonggang to resolve the issue urgently.