Aperam South America started up a high-permeability grain-oriented electrical steel (HGO) line at its Timóteo works, in Brazil's south-eastern Minas Gerais state.
Investments in the unit, which is the first HGO-producing line in the country, totalled around $19 million.
The project was announced in May 2015, and included improvements to the production process of Aperam's regular grain-oriented (GO) electrical steel.
The company's HGO production will supply local producers of power transformers. According to Aperam, this will allow production of smaller and more efficient equipment.
Aperam's Timóteo unit produces 800kt to 900kt/yr of crude steel.
Source: The Impact Paper from Ehmcke Consulting
