The stable and highly successful operation of four COREX ○R plants (1×POSCO/Korea, 2×JINDAL/India, 1×SALDANHA/South Africa) confirms that the COREX ○R process is a proven and viable alternative to conventional blast furnace operation. With the experience gained from these plants and the further development of the COREX ○R process itself, including the optimization of the equipment design, capital investments could be considerably reduced with a simultaneously and substantial increase in productivity.The economic viability of the COREX ○R process has been further enhanced by the introduction of specific features such as the possibility to charge high amounts of recycling/waste materials from iron and steel works and the use of low cost, alternative raw materials. For these applications new solutions had to be devised, e.g., for the briquetting of wastes/recycled materials from the iron and steel works on the basis of an inorganic binding agent, and sludge granulation technology.