Nanyang Storm 1864

Chapter 156: Change to a Copper Blast Furnace

Zheng Guohui listened to the report while walking, climbed onto the blast furnace platform, carefully inspected the progress of the No. 1 blast furnace under construction, and asked about relevant situations.

In general
Thanks to the sufficient preparation of labor force and the supply of logistical materials, the equipment installation of the Jinsha Steel Plant project has been progressing smoothly and is proceeding step by step.

Blast furnace No. 4 is expected to start trial production at the end of April next year, and blast furnace No. 2 is expected to start trial production at the end of July next year. The construction of the two projects are proceeding simultaneously.

Zheng Guohui carefully observed the blast furnace. It looked like a gas tank, but divided into two halves. After being hoisted onto the blast furnace platform, it would be closed.

After the iron-making blast furnace is assembled, a thick layer of refractory brick lining must be laid inside to form a complete iron-making blast furnace body.

Blast furnace production

Iron ore, coke, and limestone for slag making are loaded from the top of the furnace, and preheated air is forcibly blown in from the tuyere located at the bottom of the furnace for mixing and smelting.

The molten iron is discharged from the iron hole at the bottom. Impurities and other things in the iron ore form slag, which is discharged from the slag hole. This is roughly the working principle and it is not complicated.

According to Chief Engineer Reindes-Coeur
This iron-making blast furnace facility has a daily output of 35 tons. Once production starts, it runs day and night. Once the blast furnace stops, it will be a major accident.

As long as the blast furnace is shut down, the charge in the blast furnace will cool and condense into a large iron lump, and the blast furnace will be scrapped.

Under normal production capacity, about 12,000 tons of iron are smelted each year, and the output of the two blast furnaces is 24,000 tons.

"Yes, sure. The output is quite high," Zheng Guohui replied casually. Suddenly, an idea struck him, and he asked, "Can this iron blast furnace be converted into a copper blast furnace?"

"Yes, it's actually the same, with only some minor improvements. Because the melting temperature of copper is different, there is no other difference." Chief Engineer Reindes-Cole answered with certainty.

Zheng Guohui slapped his thigh and made a decisive decision: "Okay, then convert the No. 2 blast furnace into a copper smelting blast furnace."

As soon as this word comes out

Chief Engineer Reindes Cole was immediately stunned. He looked at Zheng Guohui with a puzzled look, then at Joe Johnson, and asked in confusion, "Why?"

"This is a practical need. Using traditional copper smelting methods is too labor-intensive and produces many impurities, making it difficult to control the quality of copper ingots."

"But... this would require building two storage yards, two completely different loading platforms, two sets of molds for the ladle and rolling mill, and..."

"It's a happy decision. You can submit a report to increase the budget for the additional facilities required for the No. 2 blast furnace." Zheng Guohui made the decision directly and said in an appreciative tone;
"As an experienced engineer, I believe this little problem won't be difficult for you.

After successfully completing the mission, I will give you a generous reward. You and your engineering team will receive an additional reward worth $5,000."

"Okay, for the sake of money." Chief Engineer Reindes-Cole muttered helplessly and agreed.

His entire team has more than 100 people, and each person doesn't get much.

Solved the problem

The expression on Zheng Guohui's face became noticeably brighter. The copper blast furnace was still the best. It was a gold mine with an endless supply of money.

The price of iron and copper is extremely different. One ton of iron can be sold for more than 12 taels of silver in China, but is worth no more than US dollars in North America.

The reason for such a huge gap is that China's productivity is backward, and 100% of the iron smelting furnaces used are small, primitive methods, which cannot produce iron on a large scale.

Copper is different. It costs more than $230 per ton in North America. If it can be transported to the Great Lakes region where heavy industry is more developed, it can be sold at a high price of more than $ per ton.

So what does 12,000 tons per year mean?
Even if calculated at $230, the total value can reach $280 million, equivalent to about 300 million taels of silver. Isn't this a gold mountain?
The Zamboanga Peninsula has high-grade copper mines, which must be excavated to maximize their value. This will help Zheng Guohui's ambitions of large-scale purchases, construction, and immigration, and will surely promote the rapid construction process of Da Chu.

At the current stage

The more than 12000 tons of iron produced by the No. blast furnace each year can basically meet the needs of agricultural production and industrial development in Mindanao, which is enough.

In agricultural production, various farm tools, such as shovels, plows, hoes, rakes, and iron pots, are specially produced by farm tool factories.

In terms of industrial development, the main focus is on casting various equipment bases, mining rails, steam engine cylinders, accessories, as well as various turntables, iron shafts, etc., which will be specially produced by foundries.

Before the development of modern steel and shipbuilding industry, the current output of blast furnaces is sufficient to cope with the situation.

Zheng Guohui was happily calculating in his mind that next month, Joe Johnson would return to North America to organize the acquisition and transportation of the second batch of goods.

This second batch of cargo and the sailing fleet are expected to arrive in Mindanao around February next year.

The reason why the speed was so fast was that Joe Johnson relied on the outlets of the Wan Guo Tong Bao Company on the west coast of the United States to form an operation team.

The relevant acquisition negotiations have been ongoing, and even though Joe Johnson traveled back and forth between the two sides of the Pacific, the process did not stop, but only slowed down a bit.

"Dear Joe, how much credit do you think the Wan Guo Tong Bao Company can provide?" "You mean..."

"I need to order more equipment, but I'm afraid it's too late to put it in the second batch. So, I can put it in the third batch, for example, four blast furnaces."

"Oh, God! I can't guarantee that I can find the right used one for you. I'd have to go to the East Coast or the Great Lakes region. I'm sure there won't be any on the West Coast."

"That's okay. As long as we have enough money, we can order new blast furnace equipment."

"The money you are talking about is the credit from the Wan Guo Tong Bao Bank?"

"Bingo, if you can get $100 million in credit, the current problem will be solved. You can get more orders, and here you can get the equipment and factory you need for development."

"Oh... Your Excellency, your proposal is indeed very reasonable, but I beg your pardon. I cannot respond to you at this time. Personally, I believe that from the perspective of the top management of the foreign company, this would be a good deal."

"The biggest issue is interest rates. I don't want them to go above 9%."

"I can only report your opinion. Please forgive my bluntness. Even if the bank's top management agrees, the annual interest rate will not be lower than 12%, and will probably be between 13 and 15%. The risks must be considered, and this requires in-depth discussion, and I do not have the authorization."

"Whose authorization is required?"

"Your Excellency, one million US dollars is not a small sum. This requires the authorization of the local board of directors of the Wan Guo Tong Bao Foreign Company."

"What the hell! The value of the goods I ordered from the Wan Guo Tong Bao Company has long exceeded one million US dollars. Doesn't this prove our strength?"

"Your Excellency, I will truthfully report everything I've seen to the board of directors and do my best to secure more credit for you at preferential interest rates. However, I cannot answer your questions without authorization."

"Okay, Joe, let's talk in private. You can provide some personal advice in private." Zheng Guohui acted intimately, put his arm around Joe Smith's shoulder, and led him to a secluded place on the side.

Then he said;

“In your opinion, I, the Marshal, have more than 40 loyal followers on this island who obey me unconditionally.

It is also about to expand the Luzon Islands to the north, by which time it will have a territory of more than 30 square kilometers, more than 7000 islands, and millions of people.

With such strength, is a credit line of one million US dollars too little?
How about three million dollars?
I can take you to see the copper mines in Zamboanga. Combined with the copper smelting blast furnace that has been built, the output of copper ingots alone can reach tens of thousands a year, which gives us sufficient solvency.

Not only do the two parties have a second phase of cooperation, but I can also promise third, fourth, and fifth phases of cooperation, importing goods worth no less than 500 million US dollars.

With such conditions, do you think the board of directors of Wan Guo Tong Bao Yang Hang would not be tempted?"

These devilishly tempting words made Joe Johnson's mouth dry. He realized this was a path to success. Such a huge achievement would be enough to land him a position as a director of a foreign company and become the voice of the entire Asian region.

Joe Johnson's response was still cautious. "Generally speaking, foreign banks are very cautious about first-time loans. I will definitely do my best to get it for you. How much can I offer you specifically? I think $100 million should be no problem."

“What about interest rates?”

"A 9% annual interest rate is absolutely impossible. It should generally be between 12 and 15%. All I can do is negotiate a lower limit for you, with a loan term of between six and ten years. The longer the better."

"As long as the interest rate is lower, the loan term can be shortened to 5 years, and we have sufficient repayment capacity." Zheng Guohui thought about it and waved his hand to make a decision.

"When you return to North America next month, I will arrange for the shipment of 1000 tons of copper ingots. We've been working overtime day and night, so we should be able to reach that number. That way, our message will be even more convincing."

"That's great! I'll be more confident in convincing the board of directors if I can bring this batch of copper ingots back."

"Okay, it's settled." Zheng Guohui said with a smile.

This time when he went to Southeast Asia, Zheng Guohui did not bring a large amount of silver with him. In order to cope with the expenses of immigration and leading the army south, his finances were already very tight.

Preparing for war is like a bottomless money-eating beast; no matter how much money or food you have, it is never enough to spend.

The funds paid by the capital to the Wan Guo Tong Bao Bank were also misappropriated.

This is an advance payment for the second phase of delivery of goods. The schedule has been delayed for several months, and it is inevitable that the Wan Guo Tong Bao Trading Company will have complaints.

It would be a good idea to borrow money from the Wan Guo Tong Bao Trading Company.

Thus

Deeply binding with the American-owned Wan Guo Tong Bao Trading Company and leveraging its development power is of great significance to Zheng Guohui and is a shortcut to solving the current financial difficulties.

Buying ships and equipment cannot stop, immigration cannot stop, and development cannot stop, so seeking financial support from foreign capital is a feasible way to leverage it to soar to the sky.

(End of this chapter)