Steklarna Hrastnik has successfully restarted the oxy-fuel furnace following a partial refurbishment. This marks a gradual return of production capacity, strengthening the company’s operational stability. The restarted unit is the smaller of the two furnaces.
The refurbishment extended the furnace’s lifetime by 4 to 5 years and increased the company’s melting capacity by approximately 120 tonnes per day. The refurbished 120-tonnes oxy-fuel furnace is connected to four production lines.
“We upgraded our furnace in the last two or three months to extend its lifetime for about another five years,” said Christian Froba, CEO of Steklarna Hrastnik and Vaider Group. “With that, we now have 120 tonnes more capacity available every day to serve our customers. That was the main driver for this activity, which helps us to grow further in the market.
“This furnace is an oxy-fuel furnace, which means we are burning natural gas and oxygen, but we can also import high electric power, meaning we can melt electrically in the furnace. This investment or renovation was close to EUR 1 million, which is an investment in our future and in the further growth of the company here in Slovenia.”