Method of inductively heating steel ingots for the purpose of producing seamless tubes in an extrusion process using at least one shell of a non-magnetisable or non-inductive sheet as a transport shoe for the steel ingots, which are pushed through a preferably tubular induction furnace for inductive heating for the purpose of producing seamless tubes in the extrusion process, wherein the shell is formed in such a way that it partially reaches around the contour of the steel ingot to be heated, and the shell is provided at an end leading in the pushing-through direction or transport direction with a shoulder, which extends at an angle to the transport direction and against which the steel ingot rests in such a way that the pushed-through steel ingot entrains the shell, comprising the following method steps: a) extracting a shell from a shell magazine (17A, 17B) b) providing the shell on a push-in device so that the shoulder comes to rest at the end leading in the transport direction and faces upwardly against gravitational force, c) placing the steel ingot on the shell, d) pushing the assembly of the shell with the steel ingot disposed thereon into the induction furnace, wherein the assembly of shell and steel ingot then pushes forward any steel ingot already present on a shell in the induction furnace, e) pulling out the heated steel ingot on the shell and with the shell from the induction furnace, f) separating the heated steel ingot from the shell and g) repeating the method steps a) to f), wherein the method steps a) to f) are carried out in the sequence in which they are listed, characterised in that the separation of the heated steel ingot from the shell according to method step f) takes place during a horizontal transport movement of the assembly of the heated steel ingot and the shell or on a horizontal transport means, wherein the horizontal transport movement of the steel ingot is stopped by means of a stop or at a stop, which acts directly against an end face of the steel ingot leading in the transport direction of the steel ingot and which is so arranged that it acts as a stripper when the assembly of shell and steel ingot is lifted, wherein the height of the stop is so selected that lifting of the heated steel ingot by an ingot lifting device would cause stripping of the shell from the steel ingot in the case of the shell adhering to the steel ingot. a) extracting a shell from a shell magazine (17A, 17B) b) providing the shell on a push-in device so that the shoulder comes to rest at the end leading in the transport direction and faces upwardly against gravitational force, c) placing the steel ingot on the shell, d) pushing the assembly of the shell with the steel ingot disposed thereon into the induction furnace, wherein the assembly of shell and steel ingot then pushes forward any steel ingot already present on a shell in the induction furnace, e) pulling out the heated steel ingot on the shell and with the shell from the induction furnace, f) separating the heated steel ingot from the shell and g) repeating the method steps a) to f), wherein the method steps a) to f) are carried out in the sequence in which they are listed, characterised in that the separation of the heated steel ingot from the shell according to method step f) takes place during a horizontal transport movement of the assembly of the heated steel ingot and the shell or on a horizontal transport means, wherein the horizontal transport movement of the steel ingot is stopped by means of a stop or at a stop, which acts directly against an end face of the steel ingot leading in the transport direction of the steel ingot and which is so arranged that it acts as a stripper when the assembly of shell and steel ingot is lifted, wherein the height of the stop is so selected that lifting of the heated steel ingot by an ingot lifting device would cause stripping of the shell from the steel ingot in the case of the shell adhering to the steel ingot.