August 2004

WCI Successfully Completes 42-day Blast Furnace Reline

Warren, OH— WCI Steel, Inc. announced that iron production at its blast furnace has resumed after the successful completion of a $15.3 million reline.

“The reline was completed on time and on budget, thanks to the work of our blast furnace, engineering and plant services teams and our partnership with our main contractor, Graycor,” said Patrick G. Tatom, WCI’s president and chief executive officer. “We are now focused on returning to full production and servicing our customer base.”

Employees will be recalled as downstream units restart sequentially when steel is received to process.

The scope of the 42-day reline included replacement of the brick and refractory lining, installation of a new tuyere jacket, replacement of copper mantle plates and copper stack cooling plates, improvements to the water distribution system and repairs to the gas cleaning system.

WCI completed numerous other maintenance projects throughout the plant during the reline, including the reline of the No. 2 vessel at the basic oxygen furnace, furnace maintenance at the hot strip mill and generator and motor repairs at the tandem mill.

WCI is an integrated steelmaker producing more than 185 grades of custom and commodity flat-rolled steel at its Warren, Ohio facility. WCI products are used by steel service centers, convertors and the automotive and construction markets. The company has approximately 1,650 employees.