A vital piece of equipment from Port Talbot’s decommissioned Coke Ovens has been given a second life at Tata Steel’s Trostre packaging facility in Llanelli, delivering impressive savings and efficiency gains.
Trostre’s Area 2 Operations Manager, Andrew Emmanuel, explained the challenge: “Our old tricanter was mechanically obsolete, so replacing it was critical, given the substantial costs of processing and disposing of oily effluent.”
These improvements have already saved Tata Steel over £150,000
Fortunately, a solution emerged from collaboration with Tim Jenkins at Morfa Coke Ovens in Port Talbot. The decanter, no longer needed in Port Talbot, was identified as a perfect replacement. Following a formal request, the asset was relocated to Trostre, where it has delivered remarkable results since its commissioning.
“Dai Canter has exceeded expectations,” said Andrew. “The machine processes solids that are much dryer, while the oil now has a water content of less than 4%, reducing offsite disposal costs and opening the door to recycling the oil. Additionally, water from the process is redirected into the mill coolant system, cutting fresh water and steam usage.”
These improvements have already saved Tata Steel over £150,000, while mitigating an operational risk.
The project was a collaborative effort, led by Rolling Departmental Mechanical Engineer Richard Jones, with contributions from Trostre’s engineering and contractor teams. “This success is a testament to teamwork and innovation,” added Andrew.
*A tricanter separates two liquids of different densities, and a solid.
About Tata Steel
- The Tata Steel Group has been named one of the most ethical companies in the world, and is among the top producing global steel companies with an annual crude steel capacity of 34 million tonnes.
- Tata Steel in the UK has the ambition to produce net-zero steel by 2045 at the latest, and to have reduced 30% of its CO2 emissions by 2030.
- In October 2024, Tata Steel ceased ironmaking at its Port Talbot site and temporarily paused steelmaking pending the construction of a 3.2Mtpa Electric Arc Furnace, due to be commissioned late in 2027 / early 2028. For that period, the business will import slab and hot rolled coil to support manufacturing and distribution operations at sites across Wales, England and Northern Ireland as well as Norway, Sweden, France, Germany and UAE. It also benefits from a network of sales offices around the world.
- Throughout 2024 Tata Steel UK has been undergoing a restructuring that will reduce the size of its workforce to around 5000 direct employees, supplying high-quality steel products to demanding markets, including construction and infrastructure, automotive, packaging and engineering.
- Tata Steel Group is one of the world's most geographically-diversified steel producers, with operations and a commercial presence across the world.
- The group recorded a consolidated turnover of around US$27.7 billion in the financial year ending March 31, 2024.
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