(Archived) U.S. Steel To Install Two More Praxair CoJet® Gas Injection Systems

DANBURY, Conn., October 21, 2003 — Praxair, Inc. (NYSE: PX) announced today it is now installing additional CoJet® gas injection systems on two basic oxygen furnaces (BOFs) located at United States Steel Corporation (NYSE: X) Gary Works. The installation will be completed by the end of October 2003.

Currently, U. S. Steel's Gary Works has the CoJet system installed on one BOF. The installation of the CoJet system on the two remaining vessels at Gary Works will result in use of Praxair's CoJet technology on all the furnaces at U. S. Steel's No. 1 BOF shop. The U. S. Steel project includes the purchase and installation of the CoJet system proprietary lances and tips, valve racks, advanced automation control and lance ID systems for both 240 ton BOF vessels.

"The decision by U. S. Steel to install the additional Praxair CoJet gas injection systems is a clear recognition of the yield and cost savings benefits of this technology," said Charles J. Messina, vice president of Praxair Metals Technologies, a business unit of Praxair.

United States Steel Corporation, headquartered in Pittsburgh, Pa., manufactures and sells a wide variety of steel sheet, plate, tubular and tin products, coke, and taconite pellets. U. S. Steel is the largest steel producer in the United States and has steel producing subsidiaries in Slovakia and Serbia. For more information, visit them on the Internet at www.uss.com.

Praxair Metals Technologies is the business unit responsible for the development, marketing and licensing of Praxair's technologies for process control software and technical services in energy conservation, product quality and productivity in ferrous and non-ferrous metals customers around the world. For more information, visit us on the Internet at www.praxair.com/metals.

Praxair is the largest industrial gases company in North and South America, and one of the largest worldwide, with 2002 sales of $5.1 billion. The company produces, sells and distributes atmospheric and process gases, and high-performance surface coatings. Praxair products, services and technologies bring productivity and environmental benefits to a wide variety of industries, including aerospace, chemicals, food and beverage, electronics, energy, healthcare, manufacturing, metals and others. More information on Praxair is available on the Internet at www.praxair.com.