Process for producing sintered magnesia

Process for producing coarse-grained sintered magnesia, starting from pulverant magnesium oxide, converting said magnesium oxide into green compacts and subjecting the green compacts to sinter-firing at high temperature until said sinterfired green compacts have an apparent density of at least 3.3 g/cm.sup.3, characterised in that the green compacts which are subjected to sinter-firing are formed from an active, reactive pulverant magnesium oxide of a grain size of <0.15 mm and formed by pelletising on a granulating disc at a material throughput of less than 250 kg of MgO/m.sup.2 of disc area and per hour, wherein the pulverant magnesium oxide has a mean residence time on the granulating disc of 1/2 to 2 hours.