Abstract <p>The production of hot briquetted iron in Russia is carried out only at Lebedinsky Mining and Processing Plant. Among the consumers are also foreign countries, so it is important for the briquets to have sufficient strength for further transportation. The influence of the granulometric composition of the briquetting dispersive material on strength was studied under laboratory conditions. The possibility of enhancing the strength properties of the briquets by returning metallized fines for briquetting was demonstrated. A ratio of metallized pellets to metallized fines of 1 : 1 yields the best results in terms of strength and density of the briquet. Furthermore, experiments showed the feasibility of returning “chips” sized from 8 to 10 mm for increasing the strength of the briquets.</p>