Steel Times International Digital June 2022

EUROPE’S STEEL INDUSTRY

STEEL’S GREEN CREDENTIALS

POSCO’s decarbonization plan

Kobenable Steel from Japan

By the German Steel Federation’s Hans Jürgen Kerkhoff

Steel is a crucial engineering material, says Global Market Insights

The leading South Korean steelmaker on its road map to decarbonization

Japanese steelmaker Kobelco talks about its first low CO2 blast furnace steel

Since 1866

www.steeltimesint.com Digital Edition - June 2022 - No.22

DECARBONIZING STEEL IN EUROPE

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CONTENTS – DIGITAL EDITION JUNE 2022

EUROPE’S STEEL INDUSTRY

STEEL’S GREEN CREDENTIALS

POSCO’s decarbonization plan

Kobenable Steel from Japan

By the German Steel Federation’s Hans Jürgen Kerkhoff

Steel is a crucial engineering material, says Global Market Insights

The leading South Korean steelmaker on its road map to decarbonization

Japanese steelmaker Kobelco talks about its first low CO2 blast furnace steel

Since 1866

www.steeltimesint.com Digital Edition - June 2022 - No.22

2 Leader

by Matthew Moggridge.

Front cover photo courtesy of Kocks.

Currently the biggest KOCKS Block in Europe – RSB® 435++/5 in 5.0

4 News round-up Seven pages of global steel news.

design is operating in Spain.

DECARBONIZING STEEL IN EUROPE

EDITORIAL Editor Matthew Moggridge Tel: +44 (0) 1737 855151 matthewmoggridge@quartzltd.com Editorial assistant Catherine Hill Tel:+44 (0) 1737855021 Consultant Editor Dr. Tim Smith PhD, CEng, MIM Production Editor Annie Baker Advertisement Production Martin Lawrence SALES International Sales Manager Paul Rossage paulrossage@quartzltd.com Tel: +44 (0) 1737 855116 Sales Director Ken Clark kenclark@quartzltd.com Tel: +44 (0) 1737 855117

11 Innovations Eleven pages of new contracts and products from around the world.

24 India update Export duty levy threatens industry plans.

26 USA update Industry braces for business.

30 Latin America update CSN’s race for green hydrogen.

32 European perspective: Why a strong steel industry is necessary for a strong Europe

Managing Director Tony Crinion tonycrinion@quartzltd.com Tel: +44 (0) 1737 855164 Chief Executive Officer Steve Diprose SUBSCRIPTION Jack Homewood Tel +44 (0) 1737 855028 Fax +44 (0) 1737 855034 Email subscriptions@quartzltd.com Steel Times International is published eight times a year and is available on subscription. Annual subscription: UK £215.00 Other countries: £284.00 2 years subscription: UK £387.00 Other countries: £510.00 3 years subscription: UK £431.00 Other countries: £595.00 Single copy (inc postage): £47.00 Email: steel@quartzltd.com Published by: Quartz Business Media Ltd, Quartz House, 20 Clarendon Road, Redhill, Surrey, RH1 1QX, England.

Tel: +44 (0)1737 855000 Fax: +44 (0)1737 855034 www.steeltimesint.com

36 Solar energy Soaring prices could thwart REPowerEU plans.

46 Decarbonization: Steel’s seriously greeen credentials.

50 Wind turbines: Molybdenum is essential for wind turbines.

54 Hydrogen steelmaking: Carbon neutrality: the industry’s goal.

58 Ironmaking: Low CO2 in blast furnace ironmaking.

62 Furnaces: Green steel with open bath furnaces.

68 Waste gases: From waste gases into dollars.

71 Aerospace: A greener future for aerospace.

76 Perspectives Q&A: Tenova Great change is exciting and scary.

39 European perspective: Decarbonizing steel in Europe.

42 Supply chain: Net-zero through the supply chain

Steel Times International (USPS No: 020-958) is published monthly except Feb, May, July, Dec by Quartz Business Media Ltd and distributed in the US

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ISSN0143-7798

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LEADER

There is no single pathway to decarbonisation...

Matthew Moggridge Editor matthewmoggridge@quartzltd.com

Digital Edition - June 2022

Decarbonisation is the big topic of the moment and it will be with us for more than just a fleeting period, it’s something that will be with us for decades to come.

We hear a lot about 2030 and 2050 and I’d imagine that you, like me, start to wonder about bigger, more existential matters, like where will I be and what will I be doing in 28 years from now? I’m not sure I want to know.

Decarbonisation is a subject jam-packed with facts and figures and questions one can preface with the phrase ‘did you know that...?’ For example, did you know that today’s steel industry needs around two billion cubic metres of natural gas per year in its processes and that’s roughly as much as Berlin’s and Munich’s joint consumption? Were you aware that the steel sector accounts for 2.6Gt of carbon dioxide emissions annually, making up roughly 10% of the global total?

And there’s more, as the 1970’s British comedian Jimmy Cricket used to say. You’ll probably know a lot of this stuff already, like the average steelworks emits two tons of CO2 per ton of steel, but were you aware that 70% of global blast furnaces

are scheduled to be relined by 2030? And while everybody believes hydrogen is the way forward, it’s important to note that, where emissions reduction is concerned, there is ‘no single pathway’ but a range of solutions that will compete and integrate to help lower emissions, says Lanzatech.

The goal, of course, is carbon neutrality and that’s what everybody is hoping to achieve, give or take, by 2050. Kobe Steel, writing in this publication, believes it will reduce its emissions by 30-40% (compared to fiscal 2013 levels) by 2030 and achieve zero emissions 20 years later.

The South Korean steel industry is responsible for 14% of that country’s total CO2 emissions. According to POSCO, the South Korean industry is in the process of transforming its coal-based blast furnace ironmaking into something far greener.

These are all facts and figures that you will find in the articles published in this special digital issue of Steel Times International. You will find contributions from steelmakers, plant builders, professional trade associations and management consultants. I hope you enjoy it.

www.steeltimesint.com

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NEWS ROUND-UP

POSCO Holdings and the Korea Electric Power Corp. (KEPCO) have signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) to co-operate in supplying hydrogen and developing relevant technologies, the two companies have announced.

"Not only is hydrogen an important raw material for carbon-free green steel, but it is also an essential source of clean energy for the zerocarbon era," POSCO chairman Choi Jeong-woo commented regarding the MOU. Source: The Korea Times, 1 May 2022

According to a merger notification announcement released by Austria's federal competition authority, BWB, ArcelorMittal intends to acquire all shares and take sole control over ALBA Metall Sud Franken, ALBA Metall

Following two consecutive accidents at its mines, Jastrzebska Spolka Weglowa (JSW), the biggest European coking coal and metallurgical coke producer, has declared a force majeure. Resultantly, the production operations at the ZofiÓwka Section of KWK Borynia-ZofiÓwka have been suspended, while the entire region in KWK PniÓwek, where the second mine accident occurred, has been sealed off. The duration of maintenance remains uncertain, and as a result, the company’s coal output is expected to decline by 400kt until the end of 2022.

Source: Steel Orbis, 3 May 2022 Sud Rhein-Main and ALBA Electronics Recycling. All three companies are located in Germany and currently owned by German recycling group ALBA. ALBA Metall Sud Franken and ALBA Metall Sud Rhein-Main combined operate six recycling locations in Germany, with both companies specialising in ferrous and non-ferrous metals recycling.

Source: Argus Media, 5 May 2022

Gladys 'Kitty' Little, one of Sheffield’s original ‘Women of Steel’ who fought to keep the UK city’s industry alive during World War Two, has died aged 105. Gladys passed away peacefully surrounded by her family at Beechy Knoll residential home. The supercentenarian was one of the last living ‘Women of Steel’, so named as they were called up to work within Sheffield’s steelworks industry while the men in their lives fought overseas in World War Two. Source: The Sheffield Star, 3 May 2022

Saudi Arabia’s Ministry of Industry and Mineral Resources has said that it has secured $6 billion for a steel plate mill complex and electric vehicle battery metals

Carbon emissions from Tata Steel blast furnaces are being converted to chemicals in a project which could help large polluters lower their carbon footprint. Gases from the firm's Port Talbot steelworks are mixed with tiny bacteria from sewage plant samples.

"Microbes have always been able to do it," Dr Rhiannon Chalmers-Brown, the researcher from the University of South Wales, who runs the trial project, commented.

Researchers say this process could be used to get rid of the CO2 coming from the chimneys of many different industries.

Source: BBC, 5 May 2022

plant as part of plans to lure an investment worth $32 billion into the mining sector.

The ministry’s target would fund nine mining projects for midstream minerals and metals, including a $4 billion steel plate mill complex for the shipbuilding, oil and gas, construction and defence sectors and a green flat steel complex that will supply the automotive, food packaging, machinery and equipment, and other industrial sectors.

Source: Reuters, 6 May 2022

Three contract workers were injured in a blast at one of Tata Steel’s units in the eastern state of Jharkhand on 7 May. The unit was not operational and was undergoing a dismantling process, Tata said in a statement, adding that production has not been impacted. Tata did not say what had caused the blast but local media reported that it happened in a gas pipeline at a battery site and led to a massive fire. Source: Reuters, 7 May 2022 www.steeltimesint.com

NEWS ROUND-UP

Over 100 members of an Indian labour union mobbed employees at a steel company in Maharashtra, injuring nineteen policemen, and smashing 12 window panes.

The police have so far arrested 27 people and registered a case against them under various IPC sections, including attempt to murder, rioting and criminal conspiracy, an official has said. The riot was allegedly in relation to an unspecified issue pertaining to the labour union.

Source: The Free Press Journal, 8 May 2022

The National Union of Metalworkers of South Africa (NUMSA) began a strike at ArcelorMittal South Africa, after wage negotiations broke down. South Africa's labour court ordered that workers at the company's steel plants, blast furnaces and coke batteries be excluded from an ongoing job boycott, after ArcelorMittal argued that due to workers being within an essential service, they were barred from striking by law, NUMSA said.

Source: Reuters, 12 May 2022 www.steeltimesint.com

JSW Steel will soon put its subsidiary in Italy on the block as many efforts by the company to revive the business have failed amid rising raw material costs and pressure mounting to make fresh investment to cut emissions. JSW Steel had acquired the once prized and second largest steel plant at Aferpi for €55 million (451 crore) from Algeriaheadquartered Cevital in 2018. However, the plant could not be turned around despite a huge investment to upgrade it and cut-down on costs.

Source: The Hindu Business Line, 10 May 2022

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Japan’s biggest steelmaker, Nippon Steel, plans to supply carbon neutral steel from the fiscal year starting 2024, it has announced. "There is only one way to overcome the unique difficulties that Japan's steel industry faces.

That is to supply carbon neutral steel ahead of our global competitors," said Nippon Steel president, Eiji Hashimoto. According to Hashimoto, the company will initially supply 700 Kt of steel that would not emit CO2 in the manufacturing process, either by shifting to alternative energy sources or by capturing any CO2 that is emitted.

Source: Reuters, 10 May 2022

POSCO has announced that it plans to supply 275 tons of steel to Dutch company Hardt Hyperloop next year for a hyperloop project. The steels, dubbed ‘PosLoop 355,’ will be used for a 450-metrelong hyperloop test lane in the Netherlands, POSCO said.

In 2019, Hardt Hyperloop announced a plan to build a 3-kilometre hyperloop test facility. The hyperloop is high-speed transport for passengers or cargo by using magnetic levitation and propulsion. The zero-emission transport network envisions connecting cities within a short travel time, potentially offering an alternative to short-haul flights and easing congestion at airports.

Source: Yonhap News Agency, 11 May 2022

Pacific Steel Group has announced it has signed a contract with Pennsylvaniabased Danieli Corp. to construct a state-of-theart mill that would slash greenhouse emissions. In early 2025, the company expects

to begin commissioning an installation that it stated will employ about 400 people and put out as much as 380 Kt of steel for reinforcement such as rebar.

Source: yahoo!news, 14 May 2022

Gerdau has announced a $67 million upgrade project to its Jackson steel mill on the northern edge of town. The investment will expand the location’s merchant bar product range and operational competitiveness, while improving the flexibility of Gerdau’s network of mills. The project involves a variety of upgrades to Jackson’s rolling mill, roll shop, warehouse, and warehouse conveyer. Project completion is targeted for February 2024. Source: The Jackson Sun, 16 May 2022

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NEWS ROUND-UP

Steel Dynamics, Inc. has announced that as part of its North American raw material procurement strategy, the company has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire the equity interest of ROCA to be funded with available cash. ROCA is headquartered in Monterrey, Mexico and operates a ferrous and non-ferrous scrap metals recycling business.

ROCA's primary operations are comprised of four scrap processing facilities, strategically positioned near high-volume industrial scrap sources located throughout Central and Northern Mexico.

Source: yahoo!finace, 16 May 2022 ArcelorMittal has announced the acquisition of 10 scrap recycling facilities from the Alba International Recycling business unit of the Berlinbased Alba Group. According to the steel producer, the deal involves 10 scrap yards in southern Germany that have been branded in three different ways: Alba Metall Süd Rhein-Main, Alba Metall Süd and Alba Electronics Recycling.

Source: Recycling Today, 20 May 2022

Russian steelmaker Severstal has said that the Russian government has granted it permission to maintain its global depository receipts at stock exchanges outside of Russia. The company, which is majority owned by Alexey Mordashov, a Russian oligarch sanctioned by the EU and UK, said the rights of GDR holders will continue to be determined in accordance with the relevant agreements.

GDR holders will continue to receive dividends and have voting rights.

Source: Market Watch, 18 May 2022

Around 1,200 young children from across Deeside, North Wales, will take part in the Tata Kids of Steel minitriathlon in June. School children aged between seven and 11 will gather from across the area to swim, bike and run to complete the event.

Tata Steel’s Shotton Works manager Bill Duckworth said, ‘‘It’s a brilliant team-building activity for lots of Shotton steelworkers who volunteer to help out on the day.” The Kids of Steel series has enabled more than 50,000 children to participate in a triathlon since it was launched by Tata Steel in 2007. Source: The Leader, 19 May 2022

British Steel has unveiled a £1m laser measurement system for its Special Profiles business at Skinningrove.

The investment follows the announcement that British Steel has submitted a planning application for a £26m improvement to its special profiles business.

The plans for a new service centre at Skinningrove, which include cut-to-length lines, product milling, machining and warehousing operations, would enable the company to make and process profiles for the forklift industry.

Source: The Yorkshire Post, 19 May 2022

Cameroon’s government has signed a $675.96 million highgrade iron ore mining deal with a subsidiary of Sinosteel Corporation Limited, as China seeks new sources of the steel-making ingredient. Sinosteel Cam S.A., the Cameroonian subsidiary of the state-owned Chinese miner, will develop the Lobe iron ore mine in the central African nation, helping China to diversify its sources of iron ore beyond Australia, with which it is in a trade war, and Brazil. Under an initial 20-year mining convention, Sinosteel Cam aims to mine 10Mt of ore with 33% iron content annually.

Source: Hellenic Shipping News, 21 May 2022 The Tata group has banned smoking and consumption of intoxicating substances at the workplace. In a letter, the chief human resources officer (CHRO) of Air India, Suresh Dutt Tripathi, asked employees not to smoke or consume 'intoxicating substances'. Issued on 18 May, the letter stated, “We are a responsible organisation that completely prohibits smoking and consumption of any intoxicating substances at the workplace. We have zero-tolerance for violations of the above. Any violation is viewed seriously and will be dealt with appropriate consequences.” Source: The Indian Express, 22 May 2022

NEWS ROUND-UP

An explosion occurred at Lafarge North America in East Chicago, at a contractor's facility at a mill that turns slag into cement. No injuries were reported, said Patricia Persico, a spokeswoman for ClevelandCliffs Indiana Harbor West.

The explosion was in the raw materials section of the mill along Lake Michigan. Several small fires at the mill had to be extinguished. Persico said recent rain caused the explosion.

Source: abc7 Chicago, 23 May 2022

Steel pipe manufacturer Vallourec has announced that it is closing its plants in Düsseldorf-Rath and Mülheim/ Ruhr, axing about 2,400 jobs at these two sites alone.

Production of seamless pipes in Western Europe is to be halted completely. About 1,650 workers are affected in Düsseldorf and 750 in Mülheim. In addition, the closings will hit the many employees in subcontracting firms.

Source: World Socialist website, 23 May 2022

ArcelorMittal has announced the appointment of Stephanie Werner-Dietz as its executive vice president. Werner-Dietz is coming to the company from Nokia, where she is chief people officer and a member of the group leadership team, the company has said in a statement. In her new role, Werner-Dietz will handle the responsibility of all peoplerelated topics, including human resource management, real estate and health and safety.

Source; The Economic Times, 24 May 2022

Volvo Trucks has announced that its heavy electric trucks are to soon include parts made of ‘fossil-free’ steel, as part of the automakers' plan to slash the carbon footprint of its zero-emission vehicle.

The first steel produced with hydrogen will be used in the truck’s frame rails, the backbone of the truck upon which all other main components are mounted. As the availability of fossil-free steel increases, it will also be introduced in other parts of the truck.

Source: Green Car Congress, 25 May 2022

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Liberty Steel has announced that some workers at its Newport UK site will be placed on a furlough-type scheme on reduced pay until the end of June. According to a recent media report, staff were informed that they would not be required to come into work on Monday – and that they would be on 85% pay during that time.

However, staff would still be required to come in if required – ‘sometimes at short notice’ – an email sent to staff stated.

Workers could instead opt for guaranteed time off, the company said, although they would then be paid at 65%.

Source: South Wales Argus, 23 May 2022

An industrial gas supply agreement between Linde and Austrian steel production company voestalpine has been extended for another 10 years. Currently operating three air separation units (ASUs) and two hydrogen plants at the steel production facility, Linde has been supplying the site with gases since 1993. Commenting on the agreement, Hubert Zajlcek, member of the management board, head of steel division, voestalpine, said, “A safe, reliable, highquality and cost-effective supply of technical gases is of great strategic and operational importance for the Linz location of the voestalpine steel division.”

Source: Gasworld, 24 May 2022

China’s Baoshan Iron & Steel (Baosteel), a Shanghai-based subsidiary of the world’s biggest steelmaker Baowu Group, has successfully issued the first phase of a low-carbon transition green corporate bond for professional investors in 2022 on the

Shanghai Stock Exchange. The bond is the first low-carbon transition green corporate bond in the country, with the first phase hitting an issue size of 500 million yuan ($75 million).

Source: Fastmarkets, 26 May 2022

Digital Edition - June 2022

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NEWS ROUND-UP

Swiss Steel has been awarded a conformity certificate

by TÜV SÜD for the Swiss plant Steeltec AG and its subsidiaries in Germany and Turkey. As part of their decarbonization strategy, the Swiss Steel Group had the carbon levels in production at its Swiss plant Steeltec AG and its subsidiaries in Germany and Turkey verified and the result, according to the company, was 63kg of CO2 released per tonne of crude steel produced (compared to the industry average of 2 tonnes.)

Source: Market Screener, 25 May 2022

Mauritanian iron ore mining company SNIM – Société Nationale Industrielle et Minière – and ArcelorMittal have signed a nonbinding memorandum of understanding to assess jointly developing iron ore pelletising and direct reduced iron plants in Mauritania, with SNIM supplying iron ore feedstock. A pre-feasibility study will be carried out over the next four to six months to give better insight into the viability of the potential project, according to a statement made by the companies.

Source: Kallanish, 27 May 2022

Jindal Steel and Power Ltd. (JSPL) will be setting up India’s first rail wheelset manufacturing plant at its Raigarh facility in Chhattisgarh. A company statement said that JSPL has collaborated with GIFLO Steel - Hungary for this project. The collaboration has been signed between GIFLO Steel -Hungary and Jindal Steel in New Delhi.

The move to set up a rail wheelset manufacturing plant in the country is significant, since India meets most of its requirement of around 60,000 wheels per annum through imports.

Source: The Economic Times, 27 May 2022

The first ‘super-column’ of steelwork at Everton Football Club’s new Bramley-Moore Dock stadium has been installed. Less than a year after ground was first broken on the north Liverpool development, the first 18-tonne internal column was installed in the north-western quadrant, which will soon be annexed to the concrete elevation. More than 12 Kt of steelwork will make up the framework of the 52,888-capacity stadium, which is set to cost £505m and be completed in 2024.

Source: Construction News, 30 May 2022

Tata Steel’s Jamshedpur Steel Plant has been recognised as the World Economic Forum’s Advanced 4th Industrial Revolution Lighthouse (which is a recognised community of production sites and other facilities that are leaders in the adoption and integration of the cuttingedge technologies of Industry 4.0) With this new milestone, Tata Steel is one of the few enterprises with three manufacturing sites in the Global Lighthouse network, with Kalinganagar Plant (India) and IJmuiden (the Netherlands) being the other two sites. The award was presented to T. V. Narendran, CEO of Tata Steel, during the Global Lighthouse Network Dinner at the World Economic Forum.

Source: The Avenue Mail, 27 May 2022

Alfa Laval has signed an agreement with SSAB, the global Swedish steel company, to collaborate on the development and commercialization of the world's first heat exchanger to be made using fossil-free steel. The goal is to have the first unit made with hydrogen-reduced steel ready for 2023. The collaboration is also an important step in Alfa Laval's journey to become carbon neutral by 2030. Source: Cision, 31 May 2022 Jindal Stainless Limited (JSL) has announced that it has supplied 155 tonnes of steel to Indian Railways for its stainless-steel footbridge project in Srikakulam, Andhra Pradesh. According to the company, the said infrastructure is the second stainless steel footbridge in India. The stainless-steel grades for the coastal railway infrastructure have been approved by the Research Design and Standards Organisation of the Indian Railways, JSL said. Source: Money Control, 31 May 2022 Digital Edition - June 2022

www.steeltimesint.com

NEWS ROUND-UP

STILRIDE, a Stockholm-based start-up, has announced the launch of a parent company through which its ‘industrial origami’ tech will be made accessible to designers, architects, manufacturers and engineers. Through STILFOLD, designers and manufacturers will be able to use speciallydesigned fittings for robotic arms to fold sheets of steel over curves, significantly reducing the environmental impact of production.

Source: EU Startups, 30 May 2022

Agha Steel Industries Limited, a leading steel manufacturing company, has signed an agreement with Saima Group for exclusively providing green electric arc furnace technology steel re-bars to its first of a kind eco-friendly green housing structure project. Addressing the occasion, Saima Group chairman Zeeshan Zaki said: “We are very excited to launch Pakistan’s first eco-friendly green housing structure project that shall be built exclusively with the finest and most technologically advanced re-bars supplied by Agha Steel.’’

Source: Digital Associated Press of Pakistan, 31 May 2022

Volvo Cars has become the first car maker to sign up to the SteelZero initiative, which aims to increase demand for fossil-free steel and accelerate a transition to carbon neutrality in the global steel industry. By signing up to SteelZero, Volvo Cars claims that it has committed itself to stringent CO2-based steel sourcing requirements by 2030. By 2050, all the steel it sources should be net-zero steel, which is in line with the company’s ambition to be climate neutral by 2040.

Source: Automotive World, 31 May 2022

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South Korean steelmaker Posco has warned that efforts to make its steelmaking processes less polluting in the face of tougher regulations and customer demands could make the company less costcompetitive against Chinese and Indian rivals. The world’s sixth-biggest steelmaker is South Korea’s worst polluter, as conventional processes of producing the metal that use coking coal to melt iron ore and remove oxygen are highly carbon-intensive. The company wants to replace coal with hydrogen by 2050 to meet tougher domestic regulations and growing public calls for low-carbon steel products.

Source: The Financial Times, 6 June 2022

The Materials Processing Institute has announced that it is leading an exciting £270,000 project this summer to demonstrate green steelmaking innovation in the UK. It will replace coke and other polluting fossil fuels currently powering traditional iron furnaces with hydrogen and electricity to create a low carbon steel industry. The project – codenamed H2DRI – will focus on how the process can be scaled up and will build practical and scientific understanding on how best to deliver economically and environmentally sustainable green steelmaking.

Source: Business Up North, 6 June 2022

Dajin Offshore Heavy Industry, which announced that it signed a contract for the supply of monopiles for the UK’s Moray West project, has said that it plans to open a manufacturing facility in Europe that would produce both fixed and floating foundations for offshore wind projects.

For Ocean Winds’ Moray West offshore wind farm, the Chinese company first signed a capacity reservation agreement in December last year, with the firm agreement for 48 monopiles now in place and the first steel already cut.

Source: Offshore Wind.biz, 6 June 2022 Digital Edition - June 2022

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NEWS ROUND-UP

A subsidiary of Liberty Steel has agreed to pay $33 million to make good on a settlement with Tata Steel in a dispute over payments from the acquisition of Tata’s speciality metals operations. High court judge Neil Calver signed off a consent order, dated 26 May, requiring GFG Alliance-owned Liberty to make a series of outstanding payments by 10 June.

Source: Law 360, 6 June 2022

Emirates Steel, the UAE’s largest listed steel and building materials company, has signed a memorandum of understanding with Abu Dhabi University to establish the UAE’s first metallurgical laboratory specialised in steelmaking. The laboratory will contribute to enriching the educational experience in the research of metallurgy and the science of iron and steel.

Source: Zawya, 7 June 2022

Digital Edition - June 2022

Global miner Rio Tinto has teamed up with Salzgitter to assess whether its iron ore products can be used to produce carbon-free steel at the German steelmaker's SALCOS green steel project, the companies have said.

Under the agreement, they will explore whether Rio's iron ore pellets, lump and fines from its mines in Canada and Australia can be used in the Salzgitter Low CO2 Steelmaking (SALCOS) project in Lower Saxony, Germany.

Source: Reuters, 7 June 2022

The Ministry of Steel, an executive branch agency of the Indian government that is responsible for formulating all policies regarding steel production, distribution and pricing in India, has drawn up a sustainable roadmap for utilisation of plastic waste in steel production with the objective of reducing waste through recycling and reuse.

The institution’s goal is to minimise carbon emissions and lessen the country's dependence on metallurgical coal imports.

Source: MySteel, 7 June 2022

Czech steelmaker Tinecké železárny has announced that it will start implementing new projects to reduce carbon emissions by more than a half by 2030. The first project to be started next year will be the construction of a new emission-free briquetting line with an annual capacity of up to 5Mt of briquettes, which will partially replace sinter in the blast furnace and in the steel plant. Thanks to the line, emissions will be reduced by up to 7Mt per year. Source: Steel Orbis, 7 June 2022

Maanshan Iron and Steel Co. has announced that Changjiang iron and steel, the company's holding subsidiary, transferred 5.5Mt of iron making capacity to Zhanjiang iron and steel, a subsidiary of China Baowu, the company's indirect controlling shareholder. The company purchased 2.8 Mt of steelmaking capacity of Baosteel Special Steel, a subsidiary of China Baowu, the indirect controlling shareholder of the company.

Source: Equal Ocean, 7 June 2022

ArcelorMittal Liberia has inducted 19 young Liberians into its workforce as part of its special professional development programme.

The 19 university graduates were inducted into the company’s young professional programme after a month of rigorous vetting. Speaking at the formal induction in Monrovia, Rose Kingston, ArcelorMittal’s head of organizational development and human resources, stated that the new employees had proven to be some of the ‘most talented people in Liberia.’ Source: GNN Liberia, 7 June 2022

A steel boom is set to be built on the River Clyde, UK, – with the device designed to catch litter as it flows out towards the sea. A new scheme will see the large boom suspended across part of the river to catch plastic and litter pollution in an effort to limit Glasgow’s environmental impact. Everything netted by the device will be extracted and analysed by Glasgow City Council, allowing them to identify the most common types of litter that make their way into the city’s waters. The announcement coincided with the United Nations’ world oceans day.

Source: The National, 8 June 2022

INNOVATIONS

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German steel company adds Konecranes reach stacker to its mill Sigma Weiterverarbeitungs GmbH & Co KG (Sigma), a steel manufacturing company based in southwestern Germany, has accepted delivery of a new Konecranes reach stacker for its flame cutting plant in Dillingen, Saarland, near the French border. The order was booked in March 2021 and started operation on-site the following November.

Well-established in the German steel industry, Sigma provides sheet metal, slabs, plates, coils and wire rod to customers who process the steel further for use in a wide variety of products.

With its headquarters in Dillingen, it also has operations in Düsseldorf and a sales office in Metz, in north-eastern France. The flame cutting plant in Dillingen needed new equipment that could move sheet metal both inside its facility and outside, in its storage yard. Konecranes

provided a reach stacker with magnets fitted for this purpose.

“The low height of a reach stacker means we can easily use it indoors around other mill equipment, while its speed and manoeuvrability make it easy to move our products around our site,” commented Florent Muller, managing director of Sigma. “We’ve operated a Konecranes forklift for some years, and it’s clearly increased our productivity, while Konecranes have provided excellent technical support. Now, two Konecranes lift trucks give us even better flexibility and efficiency as we serve our customers.”

“Konecranes have a solid long-term relationship with Sigma,” said Hans-Jürgen Haupt, West Germany area sales manager for Konecranes Lift Trucks. “Their trust has given us an excellent opportunity to provide high-quality products

tailored for their specific requirements in a competitive industry. Local agent Jungbluth have worked closely with Sigma and us throughout the whole process. We look forward to continuing our co-operation with both companies long into the future.”

The new reach stacker in Dillingen is a Konecranes SMV 4636 TC5, a 46-ton machine that can lift loads up to a height of 12.5m. It features a traverse with four magnets that make direct contact with the sheet metal, all controlled by hydraulics. The truck features an OPTIMA cabin for comfort and visibility, a strong box-type chassis and a wide drive axle with a long wheelbase for high stability and safe handling.

For further information, log on to www.konecranes.com

HMG Paints releases new colour range A range of 70 new metallic colours have been made available by HMG Paints for their HMG ColourBase Colour Box. The new metallic colours are available in a range of HMG products and are ideal for industries such as commercial vehicle, horseboxes and ACE (agricultural and construction equipment) among others.

“Our colour team have worked tirelessly to bring these new metallic shades to our distributor network and customers, the new colours have been developed based on extensive collaboration with our customers and partners,” commented Danny Cleary, HMG’s sales director. “The new metallic colours are a great compliment to the existing 2,400 colours and will be popular across a number of industries.”

The new range provides enhanced colour matching capability for HMG’s customers and distribution network, claims HMG. With the system utilising HMG’s existing Unit Lite colourants, www.steeltimesint.com

the colours are available simply via a software update of ColourBase, the HMG colour formulation software which includes over 90,000 colours, offering a wide range of options.

The ColourBase Colour Box contains over 2,400 colour chips, displayed in chromatic order within 20 fan decks. The ColourBase Colour Box is a multi-function tool, in the sense that not only each colour has a chromatic code that identifies its position in the colour sequence, but it also corresponds to a colour existing on the market for reference.

“The new metallic shades combine popular metallics from ranges such as RAL and leading commercial vehicle OEMs along with the industry expertise of our colour team who have developed new shades that offer chromatic continuity.” added Danny Cleary. “Having these colours available in the Colour Box carry case means that representatives can match out on site and have

depots produce the colour almost immediately across a number of HMG systems.”

For further information, log on to www.hmgpaint.com Digital Edition - June 2022

®

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Ecoclean showcases EcoCwave system

Ecoclean, developer of cleaning services, has announced the showcasing of its EcoCwave system for water-based cleaning. Designed for immersion and spraying processes, the system has a vacuum-tight work chamber and, according to the company, is capable of anything from preliminary and intermediate cleaning right up to precision cleaning. To achieve this, the all-rounder comes with two or three tanks as standard, which are arranged vertically and designed for optimized flow conditions, preventing chips and dirt from accumulating. Each tank has a separate

wash solution circuit with full-flow and bypass filtration. The design of the roll-over unit integrated in the work chamber also ensures that all sides of the part to be cleaned are fully exposed to the wash solution, for example during ultrasonic or spray cleaning. This, claims Ecoclean, results not only in a better cleaning performance, but also in extended bath lives and, therefore, reduced costs.

The product will be showcased at MACH 2022, a UK-based event for connecting manufacturing.

Apart from presenting Ecoclean products, the staff at the booth will be informing visitors about

INNOVATIONS

various service solutions, including an iOS and Android compatible service app for maintenance and repair requirements, tailored service and maintenance concepts, developments regarding the digitization of cleaning processes, options for modernizing and adapting systems, as well as training programmes for customer employees.

For further information, log on to www.ecoclean-group.ne

Fushun Special Steel orders 3-roll RSB® 5.0 from Friedrich KOCKs of Germany The Chinese steel producer Fushun Special Steel (Fushun) has placed an order with Friedrich KOCKS GmbH & Co KG, Hilden, Germany, for a Reducing & Sizing Block (RSB®) 370++/4 in 5.0 design.

Fushun is a subsidiary of the Shagang Group, China’s largest private steel producer with approximately 42Mt of steel produced per year. The RSB® 370++/4 will be the fifth RSB® within the Shagang Group.

The 600kt/yr rolling mill is located in Fushun City, China. Key equipment within the mill is the KOCKS 3- roll RSB®, which will be located as a finishing block after the roughing and intermediate train, and will produce straight bars within a dimension of Ø 14.0 to 92.0 mm. Included in the KOCKS scope of supply is the remote control (RC) as well as the bar mill configurator Bamicon Octopus which sets up the RSB® for the individual products to be rolled. The commissioning of the new RS® is scheduled for the beginning of 2023.

For further information, log on to www.kocks.de

13

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INNOVATIONS

15

Tenova and ABB deliver technology package Leading metals industry suppliers ABB and Tenova have obtained final acceptance from their customer Acciaieria Arvedi, after partnering to deliver a technology package, which Tenova claims enables optimal charging, melting, and electromagnetic stirring for the world’s highest-yielding EAF. The solution combines a Tenova Consteel® EAF continuous scrap charging system with Consteerrer®, a model of the ABB ArcSave® electromagnetic stirrer designed specifically for continuous charging EAF systems. The electric arc furnace has a 300-ton tapping size and utilizes a charge mix which includes Hot Briquetted Iron (HBI). It was installed to meet the demand for increased output following the recent revamp of the continuous Endless Strip Production (Arvedi-ESP) casting and rolling mill line at the plant.

“We’re really thankful for the seamless collaboration between Tenova, ABB and the Arvedi

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technicians and site personnel, and for the great efforts our teams have made during this worldclass project. We’re very proud of the contribution our technologies are making to Acciaieria Arvedi’s ambitions as a steel industry trailblazer,” said Silvio Reali, Tenova senior vice president.

“The metals industry is essential for the transition to a net zero world. Working together on this milestone project will support Acciaieria Arvedi to have one of the most sustainable, efficient, and modern steel operations,” commented Zaeim Mehraban, global sales manager, metallurgy products at ABB. The new electric arc furnace has a diameter of 9.1 metres and is continuously fed by a Consteel® conveyor and the latest generation of a Tenova injection system. According to Tenova, at the core of Consteerrer® is a unique, patented, non-contact electromagnetic stirring technology

that has been shown to deliver a wide range of metallurgical improvements. Site results confirm that the Consteerrer® electromagnetic stirring system has delivered a range of process improvements, thereby increasing EAF productivity, energy and resource efficiency at Acciaieria Arvedi.

These include an 18º lower tapping temperature and a 3.6% reduction in electrical energy consumption resulting in a 38 Kt annual reduction in CO2 emissions at the plant. EAF productivity has increased by 5% and final oxygen content in the EAF steel has decreased by 17%. Other benefits Tenova lists include an increased scrap yield, reduced electrode use, lowered refractory wearing, and reduced carry-over slag.

For further information, log on to www.tenova.com

Digital Edition - June 2022

16

INNOVATIONS

Tenova to supply Tosyali Algeria

Digital Edition - June 2022

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INNOVATIONS

17

a with new electric arc furnace Tenova, developer and provider of sustainable solutions for the green transition of the metals industry, has recently been awarded a contract for the supply of a new electric arc furnace (EAF) at the Tosyali Bethioua plant, located in Algeria.

This will be the second EAF that Tenova has supplied to this site and is a key component of the current expansion project of Tosyali.

The new EAF will be designed to be almost identical to the current EAF that has been consistently operating on a line, steadily producing more than 2Mt of billets per year. According to Tenova, the first EAF supplied to the plant in 2016 achieved the highest productivity levels on record for a DRI-processing furnace.

The new equipment, powered by a 240MVA AC transformer, will process 2.5Mt per year of DRI pellets to produce hot rolled coil (HRC).

Same as the existing EAF, this new furnace will be equipped with a charging system that allows charging and melting of more than 12 tons of HDRI (hot-DRI) per minute, setting a productivity record for DRI-processing furnaces.

The existing furnace has been fed with a range of reduced iron sources, including HBI. In addition, the composition of the DRI produced and processed in the Bethioua site is adjusted by blending iron concentrates from different sources, which Tenova claims allows it to achieve the most profitable balance between cost of raw materials and energy.

“In 2016, we decided to select Tenova for delivering us an exceptionally productive EAF, the first of his kind, and our choice was rewarded,” said Dr. Suhat Korkmaz, Tosyali Holding CEO. “We now trust Tenova to satisfy our expectations again in our new project.”

“Our previous co-operation with Tosyali’s team has played a fundamental role in building trust and co-operation with the user, a very demanding and experienced user that is quickly expanding their operation. This is in line with Tenova’s commitment to being a reliable partner and always keeping innovation and continuous improvement of our design and technologies as top priorities”, said Paolo Stagnoli, sales and marketing director at Tenova for EAFs. For further information, log on to www.tenova.com

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Digital Edition - June 2022

18

INNOVATIONS

ABB contracted to optimise steel plant production

Digital Edition - June 2022

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INNOVATIONS

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ABB has been awarded a major contract by Primetals Technologies to help optimize production at thyssenkrupp Steel Europe’s (tkSE) Duisburg-Bruckhausen plant in Germany, using the ABB Flow Control Mold electromagnetic stirring and braking technology in an aim to achieve higher quality steel produced faster and at a lower cost.

The construction of a casting rolling mill and the upgrade of an existing continuous casting plant is part of a wider project awarded to Primetals Technologies, a global leader in plant engineering for the metals industry. It is part of tkSE’s Strategy 20-30 which aims to optimize operations for the requirements of automotive customers seeking improved surfaces, thinner and high-performance steels to meet crash safety standards in the growing e-mobility market.

By using FC Mold G3 (generation 3), thyssenkrupp can prevent gas bubbles and impurities from becoming trapped in the solidifying steel as the technology will offer simultaneous stirring and braking from one fixed position on the caster. In continuous slab casting, conditions in the meniscus area of the solidifying steel are crucial to determining end-product quality and have a major impact on productivity and overall operating costs. Integrated with the caster, FC Mold uses electromagnetic fields to control meniscus flow speed and fluctuations. According to ABB, it enables improved process control and increased resource efficiency, requires very little maintenance and typically has a long lifespan.

With an installed base at 40 sites worldwide, performance improvements delivered by FC Mold technology are well-proven, says ABB. Typically, these include a 50% reduction in defects and up to an 80% reduction in rejected or downgraded product. In addition, FC Mold can allow for a higher casting speed.

“By significantly reducing defects, rejects, and downgrades, the FC Mold will improve cost and resource-efficiency at tkSE, thereby supporting both sustainability and profitability goals, while contributing to the company’s ambitions to meet customer requirements for higher performance steel grades,” said Zaeim Mehraban, global sales manager, metallurgy products at ABB. “Backed by decades of experience working with plant builders, like Primetals, and knowledge of metallurgical processes such as slab casting from numerous installations worldwide, ABB continues to devise solutions to solve bottlenecks in steel and aluminium manufacturing processes and repeatedly proves that they are effective.”

For further information, log on to https://new.abb.com

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Digital Edition - June 2022

20

INNOVATIONS

MAJOR, a leading global manufacturer of high-performance wire screening media, has announced its offering of complimentary on-site technical services for end users. Each programme is designed to help producers and contractors in the aggregates, mining, construction, and recycling industries to maximize uptime with their screen media and include local screening performance assessments, technical assistance, training workshops and more.

“We strive to be a dedicated partner to our customers to help them maximize the success of their operation,” said Bernard Betts, MAJOR president. “We take pride in collaborating with our dealer network to provide customized resources and individualized training to set our customers and their crews up for success. With the anticipated surge in infrastructure development, ensuring efficient processes are in place will be more critical than ever to keep up with material demand.”

MAJOR certified dealers offer screening performance assessments to identify opportunities and offer solutions for improvement to increase plant uptime and screening efficiency. A MAJOR screening expert will visit the operation and collaborate with producers to collect data and operational parameters. Upon reviewing the data, the screening expert will provide a report that includes recommendations for improvement and outlines opportunities for growth.

Technical assistance is also available through MAJOR’s dealer network. This involves a personalized plant visit where a local screening expert can address issues and make recommendations on optimal screening solutions. Each plant visit will include a vibration analysis test with MAJOR’s signature FLEX-MAT Sensor. The app-controlled vibration analysis sensor enables readings of screen box vibrations within seconds and generates a report, allowing MAJOR certified technicians to review results and fine tune an operation’s screen box without shutting down the equipment.

“We strive to take extra steps to ensure our customers’ operations are staying productive and profitable. Utilizing advanced technology like our FLEX-MAT sensor helps to achieve that,” Betts said.“The vibration measurement system allows a dealer to provide a more in-depth analysis on an operation, to improve the customer’s screening performance and profits.”

For further information, log on to www. majorflexmat.com

Digital Edition - June 2022

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INNOVATIONS

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MAJOR announces release of new technical services

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Digital Edition - June 2022

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INNOVATIONS

AMETEK Land releases new thermal imaging software AMETEK Land, a leading manufacturer for industrial non-contact temperature measurement, has released a major update of its thermal imaging processing software for the monitoring, analysis, and capture of imager data and control of thermal processes.

IMAGEPro is a Windows-based software system that aims to enable full process monitoring, device management, and control; and provides a range of monitoring, analysing, and interfacing tools and options for up to 16 imagers simultaneously.

The all-new Version 2 of IMAGEPro has been significantly modified to improve its accuracy, efficiency, speed, and reliability. According to AMETEK Land, it also saves energy by reducing the CPU load, even in extensive thermal imaging installations.

Digital Edition - June 2022

Among the main features added are intelligent time functions and calculations performed online on the live readings of the thermal imagers, which AMETEK Land claims provide the most accurate, best-suited data to fully control industrial processes.

The v2 iteration also has various new features, including: • Three additional communications interfaces and I/O options • Modbus, OPC UA, and TCP/IP • Remote monitoring, using standard browser software • Extensive analyses, process control, and custom values • Intelligent value-time functions • Online calculations on readings • Digital control of software configurations • Thermal imaging video file management and editor

• Trigger and event management • Event-controlled background recording and database management • Bidirectional data communication and I/O-management Manfred Hayk, global infrared product manager at AMETEK Land, said: “With this major software update, we ensure that the IMAGEPro software remains an extremely comprehensive, future-oriented tool. It forms a major part of innovative thermal imaging systems for intelligent process monitoring and smart control of extensive industrial thermal processes, using a single AMETEK Land thermal imager, or up to 16.”

For further information, log on to www.ametek-land.com

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INNOVATIONS

23

KELK introduces solution for bar shape measurement The KELK brand of Vishay Precision Group Inc. has introduced the ACCUCAMB Camber Gage Model C885, its advanced solution for true bar shape measurement and strip steering applications.

Using non-contact opto-electronics, the ACCUCAMB C885 enables two critical process applications for hot strip mill operators to measure bar shapes and strip positions during active rolling. For the true bar shape application, the ACCUCAMB C885 identifies deviations (the camber or curvature) of the bar from its ideal straight shape, which, according to KELK, allows operators to quickly diagnose and correct mill processing. For the strip steering application, the ACCUCAMB C885 measures strip centrelines and angles in real time, enabling automated control

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systems to maintain correct strip trajectory, which is a key process parameter.

The compact and rugged design of ACCUCAMB C885 is designed to allow the gage to be mounted and easily maintained in tight spaces on new or existing mill stands. Based on area array camera technology, the ACCUCAMB C885 system provides fast response times for the mill to control the rolling process. Infrared detection and built-in redundancy of the area array offer reliable measurement over a range of harsh mill environments. Advanced image processing algorithms simplify the set up and calibration process.

“With hundreds of installations around the globe, KELK is an innovator in optical system technologies for hot rolling mills,” said Hiro Kit-

agawa, vice president sales and marketing, KELK. “The ACCUCAMB represents the latest innovation for KELK that uses advanced sensor and software technologies to help our customers improve productivity in hot rolling processes.”

The new ACCUCAMB C885 joins KELK’s current model ACCUBAND C965 crop optimization system, ACCUBAND C965 width gage, ACCUSPEED Laser Velocimeter, ACCUSCAN hot metal detector, and ACCUBAND C775FF cold width gage, to provide additional solutions for hot rolling mills, cold rolling mills, and processing lines.

For further information, log on to www.kelk.com.

Digital Edition - June 2022

24

INDIA UPDATE

Export duty levy threatens industry plans

With the government of India having imposed a 15% export duty on a variety of finished steel products covering over 95% of India’s annual shipment, the flow of new orders has slowed- as overseas buyers are shifting their orders to other countries, including China. As a result, expansion plans of multiple steelmaking companies drafted prior to the export duty are being revisited, and potentially axed. By Dilip Kumar Jha* WITH an aim to make India self-reliant (known in India as the term ‘atmanirbhar’, which translates as ‘self reliant India’) and also allow the country to emerge as a large exporter, the government introduced a National Steel Policy in 2017 which aimed to triple India’s steel production capacity to 300 Mt/yr by 2030. Triggered by this policy, India’s leading steel producers, including Steel Authority of India Ltd (SAIL), Tata Steel, JSW Steel, Jindal Steel and Power (JSPL) among others, started working on capacity additions as demand increased, enabled by the government’s policy, which encouraged a demand environment underpinned by a massive construction and infrastructure support plan. Schemes like ‘Housing for All’, modernization and expansion in existing railway and port infrastructure, and the construction of new highways were launched by the government which boosted overall demand sentiment for the steel industry in India. Licensing iron

ore mines mostly to these steel mills also helped them with the required raw material support.

Boosted by all these positive vibes, Share in India’s overall steel exports Company

Share (%)

JSPL

35

JSW Steel

31

Tata Steel

14

SAIL

9

Source: Joint Plant Committee (JOC)

India’s export of finished steel Financial year (April-March)

Volume (Mt)

2017-18

9.62

2018-19

6.36

2019-20

8.36

2020-21

10.78

2021-22*

13. 49

Source: Joint Plant Committee (JPC), *provisional statistic

Indian steel mills announced the process of debottlenecking existing facilities and augmenting capacity through greenfield and brownfield routes. This super-cycle helped Indian steel mills to rapidly slash debt on their balance sheets. These companies took a long-term bet on the Indian steel industry following the government’s infrastructure development plans. Indian companies were also joined by global multinational companies including Arcelor-Mittal and Nippon Steel to name a few. All these leading producers aimed to focus on exports, after meeting India’s internal demand. With these capacity additions, India became the second largest producer of crude steel with a total production capacity of 154.23Mt for the financial year 2021-22 (April-March), a sharp elevation from the level of around 115Mt and 5th ranking in 2017. The government also introduced a production linked incentive (PLI) scheme to encourage

* India correspondent Digital Edition - June 2022

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INDIA UPDATE

domestic specialty steel producers to bring in additional production facilities, which envisages a total capacity to 42Mt/ yr by 2026-27 from the current capacity of 18Mt/yr. All these support schemes put together are expected to take India’s total steel production capacity to 172.5Mt/yr by 2023-24. During the financial year 202122, India’s finished steel production jumped significantly from 101.7Mt/yr to 113.6Mt/ yr despite pandemic-like global challenges.

Unfortunately, these steel mills have started reviewing their investment decisions in India.

Growth pullbacks In order to bring down the overheating steel prices for domestic consumers, the government of India imposed a 15% export duty in May on a variety of finished steel products covering over 95% of India’s annual shipments. Creating further issues for steelmakers, the government imposed a 45% export duty on pellets and hiked the duty on iron ore to 50%. In addition, import duty on coking coal, for which India is low on the ground, was reduced to ‘nil’.

V R Sharma, managing director of Jindal Steel and Power, said that steelmakers export their excess production after meeting domestic demand and hence, India’s steel exports were not necessarily at the expense of domestic consumers. Sharma www.steeltimesint.com

25

attributed the steel price rise to global factors including lower steel production and shipment from China due to Covid-induced lockdowns there, in addition to the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war which disrupted steel supply in Europe. Echoing a similar

struggling to find its way.” ANSIL is planning to invest INR 1,000 billion ($13 billion) for the next 10 years. A Crisil report finds ANSIL has a capital expenditure (capex) plan of around INR 450 billion ($5.85 billion) for the completion of

response, Sheshagiri Rao, joint managing director of JSW Steel, commented: “This excess output cannot be consumed in India.”

Expectedly, the enabling policy environment coupled with a sharp increase in production helped India double its finished steel exports in the last four years.

From the pre-pandemic level of 6.36Mt in the financial year 2018-19 (April-March), India’s steel exports jumped to 13.49Mt in the financial year 2021-22 (April-March).

But, the export duty levy came as a big blow to the entire steel industry. While existing export orders are being honoured, the flow of new orders have slowed as overseas buyers shifted their orders to other countries including China. Exporters’ assumptions that overseas buyers see India as a potential ‘China plus one’ supplier with trust, quality and commitment, got a big blow with the export levy. Rao considers the export duty levy as temporary until normalization of the retail inflation which hit a multi-decade high, with skyrocketing prices of consumer goods. But, the impact of the export duty levy is visible. The average annual capacity utilization of the Indian steel mills is expected to decline now at 75% after surpassing the benchmark 80% level for the first time in seven years and achieving 87% in the financial year 2021-22.

Dilip Oommen, chief executive officer of ArcelorMittal Nippon Steel India Ltd (ANSIL), a joint venture between ArcelorMittal and Nippon, said in an interview, “The investment in a tepid demand scenario would not be logical given that the existing capacity is already

the ongoing projects, de-bottlenecking, reconfiguration of assets, and expansion of upstream and downstream facilities along with acquisitions of ancillary assets. The company’s existing expansion plan also includes increasing steel manufacturing capacity at the Hazira plant to 14 Mt/yr from 8.6 Mt/yr at present. Additionally, the company requires long-term capex for setting up 12Mt/yr greenfield steel manufacturing units in Odisha, along with other renewable energy projects.

India’s steel behemoth Tata Steel plans to double its production capacity to 40Mt/ yr with an investment of INR 1,000 billion ($13 billion) by 2030. The company prefers to grow the capacity organically rather than acquiring assets to achieve the target. “We aimed for capacity expansions with an aim to export 10-15% of our output. But, if the export duty levy sustains then we will have to re-visit our capacity expansion and capex strategy,” said T V Narendran, chief executive, Tata Steel.

Similarly, the government-owned Steel Authority of India Ltd (SAIL) is looking to more than double its steel production capacity to 50Mt/yr by 2030.

Sajjan Jindal-promoted JSW Steel has chalked out various expansion plans including a 5Mt/yr brownfield project at Vijaynagar at an investment of INR 150 billion ($2 billion) which will take the company’s overall steel production capacity at this plant to 18Mt/yr from the existing 13Mt/yr. As a part of its next phase of growth, JSW Steel is targeting an overall capacity of 37.5Mt/yr from its current 28 Mt/yr capacity in both India and the US by 2025. � Digital Edition - June 2022

26

USA UPDATE

Industry braces for business

US President Joe Biden’s recent ‘Build America, Buy America’ act has caused a decline in steel imports, as the steel industry prepares itself to supply steel for domestic infrastructure projects. Pundits are also assessing the impact of a carbon tax on the industry, as well as the effectiveness and impact of removing tariffs on Ukrainian steel in terms of providing economic support during the current crisis. By Manik Mehta* BASED on Census Bureau data, the American Iron and Steel Institute (AISI), which profiles itself as the steel industry’s ‘voice’ and represents the industry’s interests vis-à-vis the US administration, reported that the US imported a total of 2,72Mt (net tons) of steel in April 2022, including 2,26Mt (net tons) of finished steel, posting a decline of 11.7% and 9.4% respectively over March 2022.

However, the total and finished steel imports increased by 21% and 45.1% respectively on a year-to-date basis over the corresponding period of 2021. During the 12-month period from May 2021 to April 2022, the total and finished steel imports had risen by 51.3% and 55.3% respectively

over the earlier 12-month period.

The major steel products which recorded a significant import increase in April compared to March were tin plate (+28.9%) and cut lengths plates (+ 22.5%). Other products that recorded a significant increase in imports in the 12-month period from May 2021 to April 2022 compared to the previous 12-month period included oil country goods (+118%), wire rods (+117%), plates in coils (+ 81%), hot rolled sheets (+78%) and cold rolled sheets (+76%).

The largest steel suppliers in April were Canada – 613kt (net tons), down 6% versus March; Mexico –395kt (net tons), down 27%; South Korea –250kt (net tons),

down 22%; Brazil – 241kt, down 31%) and Vietnam –121kt, down 28%. Over the 12-month period May 2021 to April 2022, the largest suppliers were Canada (6.97Mt, up 25% over the previous 12-months), Mexico (5,34Mt, up 58%), Brazil (3,69Mt, up 8%), South Korea (2,82Mt, up 30%) and Russia (1,63Mt, up 290%). All figures are net tons.

United Steel Corporation, together with United Steelworkers’ (USW) leaders and others, celebrated the company’s investment in a pig-iron caster at its Gary Works facility. The installation of the pig-iron caster is a key part of US Steel’s metallic strategy, aimed at taking advantage of its iron-ore availability.

* USA correspondent, New York Digital Edition - June 2022

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USA UPDATE

US Steel CEO David B. Burritt described the investment at Gary Works, to create the necessary material for the company’s loweremissions EAFs, as the ‘perfect example of combining the best of integrated and mini mill technologies’, adding: “We’re committed to a future of driving profitable steel solutions for people and the planet”.

The pig iron machine will be fed with iron ore from the company’s Minnesota ore operations, Minntac and Keetac. The pig iron produced is expected to supply up to 50% of the ore-based metallic needs of the Big River Steel Works.

Pre-construction for the caster began in the first quarter of 2022; the start-up is expected in early 2023. The $60 million investment is expected to create 25 new jobs at the facility, according to industry sources. Gus Atsas, president, United Steelworkers (USW), maintained that the ‘future of Gary Works and the United Steelworkers go hand-in-hand’.

The emphasis on US-produced iron and steel was enforced with President Joe Biden’s administration making it mandatory www.steeltimesint.com

that all federally-funded infrastructure projects effective 14 May use iron and steel produced in the US. The Biden administration had already issued in April a separate 17-page guidance that explained the new ‘Buy America’ requirements.

However, the basic requirement of using American iron and steel can be waived if the purchase is ‘inconsistent with the public interest’, if the required materials are not produced in ‘sufficient and reasonably available quantities or of a satisfactory quality’ or if the materials increased a project’s costs by 25% or more.

The ‘Buy American’ component is embedded in the $1 trillion bipartisan infrastructure plan that was formalized into law in November, and welcomed by the US steel industry that had earlier passed through tough times with declining demand and rising cheap imports. The situation was further exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic coupled with labour shortages and supply chain disruptions.

According to Paul Scott, president of the Alliance for American Manufacturing,

27

the emphasis on using US steel would enable the US to reduce its dependence on foreign steel alternatives. He said that ‘we’re not going to need to depend on steel from China or any other country’ adding that domestic steel producers were going to ‘circulate that money back into the economy’, which would not happen if the projects were outsourced overseas.

However, many US steelmakers are also closely monitoring the pricing situation based on global supply and demand dynamics.

The global steel market lost some steam during April, with the Covid-19 lockdowns in some parts of China, the conflict between Russia and Ukraine, and the spiraling inflation creating uncertainty in the demand outlook in 2022 and 2023.

Demand has fallen in China driven, largely, by the so-called ‘zero Covid policy’.

China, the world’s largest steel producer, produced 1.053 billion tonnes of crude steel in 2020, equivalent to 56.7% of global output. The country consumed 995 Mt of finished steel products, equivalent to 56.2% Digital Edition - June 2022

28

USA UPDATE

of global apparent steel use in 2020.

Under its zero-Covid policy, China imposed strict lockdown measures in Shanghai in early April. Since Shanghai is China’s major financial hub and also a major port, the restrictions severely disrupted the country’s import and export operations and hit Chinese economic growth in the second quarter.

Inventories held by Chinese steel mills increased to 19.67Mt by mid-April – up 23.6% compared with the same time in 2021, data from China’s Iron and Steel Industry Association showed. ‘Where will this steel end up?’, the US steel industry wondered. But global steel consumption is expected to rise to 1.84 billion tonnes in 2022, up 0.4% from 2021.

Meanwhile, as the world talks about imposing a so-called carbon tax, US pundits are assessing the impact of such a tax on the US steel industry. While environmentalists and the general public seem to favour the carbon tax, the steel industry fears the selling price of steel would increase and make the product less competitive.

According to World Bank data, 27

countries have so far enacted carbon taxes, of which only seven of them engage in actual mining. According to experts, steel production entails heavy reliance on coking coal which emits substantial CO2 levels.

US politicians are trying to cobble together a bipartisan energy and climate bill that will include a tax on carbon-intensive products imported into the US. Senator Joe Manchin recently talked to both Republican and Democratic lawmakers, and tried to assess the potential effects of the bill which is reportedly still in the embryo stage.

As the Russia-Ukraine conflict rages on, the Biden administration has been looking at possible means to help Ukraine’s economy which is in disarray. President Biden signed a proclamation suspending tariffs on Ukrainian steel for a period of one year. Imposed under former president Donald Trump, the then commerce secretary Wilbur Ross had determined that the volume of steel coming from Ukraine threatened US national security.

President Biden’s proclamation states that “Ukraine’s steel industry has been significantly disrupted by the Russian Federation’s unjustified, unprovoked,

unyielding, and unconscionable war against Ukraine. The significant disruption in Ukraine’s steel production is expected to decrease the total amount of steel produced by Ukraine as well as the amount of steel imported into the United States from Ukraine, which in 2021 accounted for less than 1% of all steel imports into the United States.”

Biden emphasized that the steel industry has been ‘historically important to Ukraine’, adding that the US ‘has an interest in maintaining that industry as an economic lifeline while the country recovers.’ The present commerce secretary Gina Raimondo would monitor the situation in the domestic steel industry and developments in Ukraine’s steel industry, and inform him on the need to terminate or extend the suspension.

However, experts contend that the action is largely symbolic at this time, given the destruction of the largest Ukrainian steel mill, in Mariupol, and the reduced production and shipping problems faced by other mills. Even at pre-invasion capacity, Ukraine’s exports to the US amounted to just 130.65Kt – less than 0.5% of US steel imports. �

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LATIN AMERICA UPDATE: HYDROGEN

CSN’s race for green hydrogen

Decarbonization is (and will continue to be) one of the greatest technological challenges faced by the world steel industry currently and in the coming decades. Some of the possible breakthroughs depend on hydrogen, which is receiving increasing attention from steelmakers across the globe. Regarding this issue, Companhia Siderúrgica Nacional (CSN), a leading Brazilian integrated coke mill, has engaged in three investments since November 2021 to take part in the green hydrogen race. By Germano Mendes de Paula* Green hydrogen and steel Green hydrogen is hydrogen produced from water via electrolysis, using renewable power and generating oxygen as a byproduct. It can substantially reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, and has the advantage of flexibility.

A JP Morgan report unveiled in March 2021 stressed that: “Green steel is technically possible, but relies on low-cost renewable power and cheap hydrogen.

Replacing coke (coal) in the blast furnace burden, with hydrogen (to act as an iron ore reducing agent) isn’t technically possible. The only technology approaching commercial scale, to produce steel from iron ore, at very low emissions, is H2-DRI/ EF. Currently there is around 108 Mt of DRI capacity globally, versus global steel production of 1.9 billion net tons (Nt).

H2-DRI replaces all or part of the natural

gas consumption with hydrogen, cutting up to 90% of the emissions. The EU steel industry has outlined 15 Mt of potential low-emissions production. However, to be commercially viable globally, there needs to be low-cost renewable power, and cheap green hydrogen. Our notional green hydrogen electrolyser project shows there are low returns, an impediment to a rapid global roll out.’’ Consequently, the development of new techniques to produce green hydrogen at a low cost might prove to be very useful for the steel industry’s decarbonisation.

CSN’S investment # 1 At this point in time, it is impossible to know which technologies will be fully successful regarding the production of green hydrogen. With this in mind, it seems wise to diversify the investments in some

technical opportunities rather than focusing on one alternative. So far, CSN has adopted three different approaches concerning the green hydrogen.

In November 2021, CSN declared that it became an investor of 1s1 Energy, a start-up founded in December 2019 in San Francisco (US). The start-up raised $1m, but the exact amount of CSN’s financial participation was not disclosed.

The start-up’s aim is to develop a solution to manufacture green hydrogen on a large scale at a highly competitive cost, by redesigning the essential components for a Proton Exchange Membrane (PEM) electrolysis process. It expects to achieve a cost under $1.5/kg, while the currently average market cost is $5/kg, which makes the input attractive not only from an environmental perspective, but also an economic one.

* Latin America correspondent Professor in Economics, Federal University of Uberlândia, Brazil. E-mail: germano@ufu.br digital Edition - June 2022

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1s1 Energy intends to set up its first membrane factory in Portugal. The expectation is that the first prototypes will be tested in two years, and the ambition is to fabricate more efficient membranes (producing more hydrogen with less energy consumption) which are longer lasting.

Another goal is to manufacture a modular system that is customisable, and can be located close to the final client.

The investment of CSN was carried out by its innovation arm (CSN Inova), which aims to position the company strategically and actively in the innovation ecosystem. CSN Inova is headed by Felipe Steinbruch, the son of Benjamin Steinbruch, the company’s largest shareholder.

CSN’S investment # 2 In January 2022, CSN announced that it was acquiring a minority stake in H2Pro, an Israeli start-up that has produced technology which promises to cheapen large-scale production of green hydrogen.

H2Pro raised $75M via a venture capital round, led by Temasek (a Singaporean state holding), with many other investors such as ArcelorMittal and Breakthrough Energy Ventures (established by Bill Gates).

Started in 2019, H2Pro was founded by Talmon Marco (who also created the communication app Viber) and a team of researchers from Technion University. Of the 50 employees, nine have PhDs. To understand what H2Pro is doing, it is important to remember that during the electrolysis of water, to prevent the two molecules from mixing, it is still necessary to put a membrane in the middle, ensuring that the oxygen compartment has only oxygen, and that of hydrogen, only hydrogen. According to CSN, H2Pro’s greatest feat was that it created a production process that eliminates the need for this membrane, managing to diminish www.steeltimesint.com

cost production by about 15% compared to other green hydrogen start-ups. To achieve this goal, H2Pro created a technology that placed the production of hydrogen and oxygen in two separate cycles (an electrochemical and a thermally activated chemical), preventing them from mixing and resulting in lower capex and opex compared to other processes.

H2Pro has recently passed the lab testing phase, and will use the resources of the venture capital round to build a testing plant. If the process works in this factory, it could already start scaling up production.

The company expects that it will be manufacturing green hydrogen production systems on a large scale as of 2023. If all goes well, H2Pro systems could fabricate green hydrogen at $1/kg (or less).

Felipe Steinbruch stated that to get to ‘zero carbon’ we would need high investments to adapt the entire industry.

However, there is the possibility of using green hydrogen in various processes that don’t require considerable investment, such as in burners that currently consume natural gas or coal. The use of hydrogen could resultantly diminish emissions by 15%-20%.

CSN’S investment # 3 In April 2022, CSN disclosed that it started a pilot project to employ green hydrogen in the production process of some areas of

the mill, located in Volta Redonda, Rio de Janeiro. The technology will be supplied by the Portuguese company UTIS, which has already utilised its technology in cement plants, and the solid waste combustion and biomass industries. Nonetheless, it will be the first time that its technology is utilised by a steel mill. UTIS was established in 2018 as a joint venture between Ultimate Cell and the Secil group. At the end of 2021, the Semapa group became a shareholder of the company.

CSN announced that it has acquired and deployed, since 2020, UTIS technology for cement production. The use began in the integrated plant of Arcos, Minas Gerais, in which it obtained a reduction of 12kg of CO2 per metric ton of cement. This new technology allows higher productivity of the clinker kiln and lower power consumption, with the company hoping to use it in other cement plants. CSN obtained financing from Finep (the Brazilian federal agency that supports innovation in industry) for the cement plant project, but this funding is not available for the steel project.

The goal is to begin the injection of green hydrogen in a controlled manner in the second half of 2022, in one or more defined areas. The system, according to CSN, is easy to install – using renewable power and water.

To summarize, in just six months, CSN has become shareholder in two start-ups focused on breakthroughs for producing green hydrogen (using different technical methods and currently in diverse stages of development) as well as currently being engaged in using new but already proven technology in installed equipment.

Therefore, in order to mitigate the risks associated with such a technical challenge, CSN has opted to invest in three different projects, reproducing a venture capital strategy. � digital Edition - June 2022

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EUROPEAN PERSPECTIVE

As a result of the challenging circumstances brought about

by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, industries have had to both adapt and respond, and their presence and transformation has been powerfully felt. To build a better world, it is clear that the economy will play a pivotal role, and the task of decarbonization will only be achieved by clear, decisive policies, says Hans Jürgen Kerkhoff*

THE war against Ukraine has fundamentally changed the political agenda in Europe within a few weeks. It is already clear today that there will be no return to the world that existed before 24 February 2022. But what is encouraging in this time of uncertainty is the determination and solidarity with which many people around the world are responding to this aggressive act by Russia. This is nothing less than an attack on freedom and the basic rules of peaceful coexistence, for which the European Union in particular stands. And once again, Europe shows that differences can be overcome when it matters – it grows in the face of threats. In addition, there is the great common task of taking away the aggressor’s blackmail potential at our borders in the form of fossil energies and raw materials – and to do so as quickly as possible. Europe’s strategic resilience is the order of the day. Economy and industry have a central role to play in this.

They stand by the primacy of politics and the new challenges we face. Europe, and Germany in particular, have been choosing a clear course towards renewable energies.

The steel companies are ready to follow this path of industrial transformation. In Germany, the steel industry is one of the largest emitters of greenhouse gas, with up to 60Mt of CO2 per year, which corresponds to the emissions of around 30 million cars. *President of Wirtschaftsvereinigung Stahl (German Steel Federation) Digital Edition - June 2022

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Why a strong steel industry is necessary for a strong Europe

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At the same time, the steel companies have very concrete concepts on how to tackle this challenge for the benefit of all. Direct reduction is aiming to replace the blast furnaces. In parallel, the scrap-processing electric steel plants are switching to green electricity and green hydrogen.

If these plans can be realised, by midcentury the steel sector in Europe will be an industry in which green products will be reflected more and more positively in the whole variety of its value chains over the years – from electric vehicles to everyday products that will contain green steel.

Another piece of good news: a significant reduction in CO2 is already possible by 2030 if the political framework conditions are set appropriately. But these must now be set in motion. A crucial aspect of this is the energy transition, which, in view of recent events, is taking on a new political dimension – one that is also security-related. We must free ourselves from old dependencies that have made us increasingly vulnerable in recent years. The transformation to climate-neutrality away from fossil energies is thus becoming an important cornerstone for freedom and stability in the European Union.

Politics, the economy, and society are facing massive challenges that are coming at a rapid rate, and at the same time, must be organised wisely and prudently by political decision-makers. Already by the summer of 2024, in just two years, for example, the Russian share of Germany’s gas supply is to drop to only 10%. At the same time, the industrial engine must continue to run, so that the foundations can be laid for the transformation to a green industry. Steel, with its position as the first knowledge-based stage of the industrial value chains, plays an important role in this: from the electric car, to the wind turbine, to the pipes for the supply of natural gas and hydrogen.

The steel companies want to stick to their decarbonization plans even in the face of the new challenges. However, this Digital Edition - June 2022

will continue to require natural gas in the coming years if climate-neutral hydrogen is not yet available in the required quantities.

Today, the steel industry needs around 2 billion cubic metres of natural gas per year in its processes; roughly as much as Berlin and Munich consume together. The goal must be that this no longer comes from Russia as soon as possible. However, it is also clear that a sudden supply stop or embargo would have a massive impact on this industry as long as no other sources are available – there would be drastic production restrictions and even damage to plants. This would also be a problem for the diverse value chains that are linked to the steel industry.

It is therefore only right that the German government does not ignore these interrelationships or suggest abandoning basic industrial production, as there are not enough manufacturers and suppliers elsewhere, even if international competition in the basic materials industry is intense.

And only with a strong local basic industry, such as steel, can innovation partnerships be maintained, and ultimately new dependencies avoided. In steel, too, the share of Russian (and Belarusian) imports in Europe at the beginning of the war of aggression was around 30%. The majority of European imports in the steel sector are from countries characterised by autocratic or non-market-economy structures.

Don’t jeopardise the green transformation Therefore, policymakers in Europe would do well not to jeopardise the green transformation. The steel industry faces around €3.4 billion in additional annual costs for gas and electricity if prices were to remain at the current level – a considerable problem for the companies’ international competitiveness.

Added to this are home-made burdens from the EU plans for emissions trading, which are apparently to be maintained despite the current uncertainties. If the

cuts in free allocation planned by the EU Commission are implemented, the industry will have to find an additional €16 billion for the purchase of emission certificates in the second half of this decade. An untested border adjustment, which moreover does not provide relief for exports, will not absorb these costs.

As a result, the steel industry will lose its international competitiveness and will also no longer be able to afford the costs of transformation. So, as long as a border adjustment has not been sufficiently tested, free allocation remains indispensable if the transformation towards climate neutrality is to succeed without production losses.

It is not a matter of perpetuating the previous CO2-intensive technologies into the future, but of enabling companies to implement their climate protection plans against the background of international competition. The transition to low-CO2 steel production will not happen overnight but will take place in stages. Free allocation will also keep conventional steel production competitive during the transition period. In this way, the further transformation can be managed, and the supply of steel secured.

Steel is at the beginning of many value chains and is also indispensable for a green energy supply with wind turbines, pipelines and much more.

Without effective protection against carbon leakage, production would migrate from Germany and Europe to other regions of the world where steel production remains carbon-based. To make the transition to climate-neutral steel production, the transformation in Europe must be successful.

To protect our free and value-based model of society against aggressive states, we need economic strength. Europe and Germany need an industry fit for the future. We must maintain the path to climate neutrality. This will only be possible with an industrial policy that draws even more dynamic conclusions from the new challenges. � www.steeltimesint.com

WE MADE IT! BUT WE ARE STILL NOT SATISFIED What a journey! It took years of hard work to make our steelmaking operations more sustainable. In 2022, we went carbon neutral in all operations. But we’re still not satisfied – our journey to decarbonize the industry has just begun.

It all started in 2015 with an ambitious goal to reduce climate impact on three fronts. First, to cut our “cradle to gate” CO2 emissions of hot-rolled products by 60% in 2030 and 70% in 2040. Second, to provide our customers with world-leading “clean steel” products and tools to calculate end-use CO2e

savings. Finally, to improve our recycling. Today, we recycle 97% of our steel and use fossil-free electricity in our steelmaking. We’ve cut our own emissions of CO2e by 55% and our product footprint is now 80% lower than the global cradle-to-gate average. But that’s not all. Soon we’ll be heating our steel before rolling with fossil-free hydrogen instead of propane and natural gas. To find out more go to www.ovako.com/h2

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SOLAR ENERGY

Soaring prices could thwart REPowerEU plans The REPowerEU initiative has the potential to add at least 420 gigawatts (GW) of solar installations by 2030; however, rising solar raw material costs could become the stumbling block to achieving this goal, says Wood Mackenzie, a Verisk business.

GLOBAL solar PV installations will grow at a compound annual rate of 8% between 2022 and 2031 to over 3,500 GW of total installed capacity. Europe is expected to account for over 9% or approximately 331 GW of installations within the period, with potential from the REPowerEU initiative to more than double the expected installations.

Wood Mackenzie senior analyst Theo Theodorou said: “The global push to phase out fossil fuels and move to cleaner energy sources has driven innovation and policies that have resulted in tremendous cost reduction in the solar PV sector over the last two decades.

However, last year, a perfect storm of covid disruptions, rapid recovery in demand from solar installations, fastincreasing freight rates, and high solar

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raw materials prices have pushed module prices more than 20% higher. Global prices for key raw materials such as polysilicon, silver, aluminium, copper and steel have all reached multi-year highs.”

Polysilicon, the main feedstock for producing wafers for crystalline silicon solar cells, has tripled in price over the last 18 months. This is due to covid restrictions and China’s power crunch resulting in delays in new capacity coming online. New polysilicon capacity in China has the potential to rebalance the market, but polysilicon prices are expected to stay elevated throughout 2022.

The main European producer, Germany’s Wacker Chemie, produces around 60 Kt/yr of polysilicon, virtually all of which is exported to China, as there

is not enough downstream capacity to consume this volume in Europe. For the region to consume its current polysilicon production it would need to increase its ingot and wafer manufacturing by a factor of 10 and further downstream manufacturing of cells and modules by 21-fold and three-fold, respectively. To achieve REPowerEU goals and create a local solar supply chain, current capacities need even more aggressive expansions at three times more polysilicon, 20 times more wafers, 42 times more cells, and six times more modules.

Furthermore, the price for antireflective ultra-clear glass, the main material used for the front side cover of solar modules, is under pressure due to increasing costs of natural gas and tin. In addition, the balance of plant materials

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such as aluminium, galvanised steel and copper all saw price increases of more than 30% since last year, and there is not a lot that can be done to reduce the intensity of use in the short term.

Theodorou said: “Europe is called to transform its energy system in the wake of the Russia/Ukraine war, with the REPowerEU initiative envisioning at least 420 GW of new solar capacity by 2030. But as more sanctions are on the way against Russia, and with electricity and fuel prices showing no signs of slowing down, Europe needs to navigate this high price environment and act fast to develop a local solar supply chain to achieve its targets.” �

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Decarbonizing steel in Europe The European steel industry is the most advanced of its kind in the world. For a long time, energy price levels in Europe have been significantly higher compared to other regions in the world. This has forced the European steel industry to optimize its processes, permanently improve its efficiency, and invest in innovative production technologies to achieve a significant reduction in its overall production costs and enhance its competitiveness in international steel markets. By Roman Stiftner* ALMOST 70 years ago, Austrian company voestalpine developed a completely new technology, the Linz-Donawitz process (LD process), and brought the first steel plant, based on this new technology, into operation. The breakthrough technology enabled significantly more steel production of better quality in a shorter time and in a much more cost-effective way. The major advantage of the LD process was a sustainable reduction in investment and operating costs of almost 50% compared to an open-hearth furnace, which was the

best available technology up to this time.

The LD process was one of the century’s most significant industrial inventions that instantaneously revolutionized the global steelmaking industry, and almost no other invention has had such an impact on global economic growth. More than two-thirds of the world’s steel today is produced using the LD process.

As it is, Europe leads the way in environmental and climate performance.

CO2 emissions and energy use in European steel production have been halved since

1960, and the sector has the ambition to further achieve cuts of between 80-95% by 2050, compared to 1990 levels.

This transition will require significant investment in new technological development and deployment, in energy infrastructure, consumption, and type, and will require access to high-quality materials, such as iron ore and scrap.

The European steel industry has established a clear set of pathway scenarios that will deliver this essential change for the sector, ensuring that Europe will remain on

*Managing director of the Austrian Mining and Steel Association www.steeltimesint.com

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EUROPEAN PERSPECTIVE

track to fulfilling its Paris Climate Accord requirements, while also making European steel fit for a clean, low-carbon future.

This change is not an instantaneous shift, it is an iterative process that will require adjustments and a managed transition between different phases.

There are two main technological pathways for greenhouse gas reductions in the steel sector. These are smart carbon usage (SCU) and carbon direct avoidance (CDA).

Smart carbon usage (SCU) includes: • Integration, which looks at modifications of existing ironmaking/ steelmaking processes based on fossil fuels that would help reduce the use of carbon within and thus the CO2 emissions of a state-of-the-art EU plant.

• Carbon valorization or carbon capture and usage, which includes all the options for using the hydrogen, CO, and CO2 in steel plant gases or fumes as raw materials for the production of, or integration into, valuable products.

Carbon direct avoidance (CDA) includes: • Hydrogen-based metallurgy, which uses hydrogen to replace carbon as the main reduction agent for the iron ore reduction stage. This hydrogen could be produced using renewable energy.

• Electricity-based metallurgy, which uses electricity instead of carbon as a reduction agent for the iron ore reduction, with a greater focus on renewable energy.

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Various conditions need to be in place to make this transformation happen. In particular, all the necessary ingredients for steelmaking need to be available in both quality and quantity. These include suitable raw materials, such as iron ore and scrap. It also means having access to sufficient low-CO2 energy sources, such as electricity and hydrogen, which must be available at commercially viable rates. The energy infrastructure that goes with it is also indispensable, as even cutting-edge, technologically advanced steelmaking facilities would be stranded without access to clean energy. During the transition, carbon capture and storage (CCS) technology may also be needed in order to support progress along the potential CO2 reduction pathway.

Finally – both during the transition and once the move to the low or carbon-neutral future of the sector has been successfully completed – there must be a regulatory framework that ensures that the EU steel industry remains competitive compared to its global competitors. Most global competitors do not face anything close to the environmental standards or climate constraints of EU players – and as such, do not bear the costs. A suitable regulatory framework would serve to address this fatal and conceived handicap, both now and in the future.

The European steel industry’s energy requirements will rise significantly, and the key to a successful transformation

will be access to reliable, affordable and clean energy. The reduction of greenhouse gases of 80-95% is only possible with CO2-free electricity and hydrogen available.

However, an essential piece of the puzzle is the additional costs that these sources will entail. The projected investment needs are very high, and both the capital and operating costs of using them will lead to significant increases in production outlays.

The total annual costs of steel production in 2050, including both capital and operating expenditure are estimated to be between €80-120 billion. However, the individual cost impact depends on the production route and is significantly higher for the primary steel production routes compared to the cost impact for the overall steel industry.

The average steel production costs of all primary steelmaking routes could increase by 35 -100% between 2015 to 2050 compared to the production costs of the retrofitted blast furnace/blast oxygen furnace route (BF/BOF). These figures account for the expectation that the price for electricity and hydrogen production will fall between now and 2050 compared to current prices.

The quantities of energy the European steel sector is likely to need will also rise sharply. The sector will need, annually, about 400 TWh of CO2-free electricity from the grid by 2050. This 400 TWh corresponds to more than seven times the steel industry’s current electricity purchase from the grid. Of this, around 230 TWh would be used for the production of about

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5.5 Mt of hydrogen.

Carbon capture and storage (CCS) may play an important role, but may not be available throughout the EU. In some EU member states, there are significant hurdles or even prohibitions on the deployment of CCS. For the ‘current projects’ scenario, about 21 Mt/yr would have been captured, transported and stored. Hence, without CCS only a 67% CO2 reduction would be possible, as opposed to the 74% cut set out in the ‘current projects’ pathway. Some ‘alternative pathways’ may require more CO2-free electricity and hydrogen and a CO2 storage capacity of up to 63 Mt/yr.

Austrian steel producer voestalpine plans to gradually shift from the coal-based blast furnace route to steel production using green electricity. Here, liquid pig iron and sponge iron (HBI) join scrap as the most important pre-materials for tomorrow’s carbon-neutral production of high-quality steel. The significant innovation in this production technology is the mixture of raw materials, with its increased proportion of HBI. Direct reduction is an important bridging technology for decarbonizing steel production. It reduces iron ore to iron with natural gas, rather than coal and coke, resulting in fewer CO2 emissions. The direct reduction process is used to produce HBI, a sophisticated and environmentally friendly pre-material used in steel production. The hybrid technology would allow the CO2 emitted during steel production at Linz and Donawitz to be significantly reduced, by around 30%. This represents an annual

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saving of 3 to 4 Mt of CO2. The hybrid concept is the basis for achieving the hydrogen-based transformation by 2050.

The EU-funded “H2FUTURE” project is researching whether green hydrogen produced on an industrial scale can replace fossil fuels in steel production over the long term. To this end, what is currently the largest pilot facility for the production of hydrogen in the steel industry has been built at the voestalpine site in Linz. The are multiple project partners like the Austrian electricity supplier VERBUND, Siemens, Austrian Power Grid, K1-MET, and many more. The electrolyzer has a capacity of over 6 MW and is regarded as the most effective and advanced facility of its type. It will be used to test whether the technology deployed to produce green hydrogen is suitable for use on an industrial scale.

A testing facility is currently being established at the Donawitz site in Styria as part of the SuSteel (Sustainable Steelmaking) project. Here, research will be undertaken into the carbon-neutral production of crude steel in a single process step using a novel hydrogen plasma technology. In the future, the facility will operate a type of electric arc furnace to produce steel directly, avoiding the crude steel stage by using hydrogen plasma to reduce ores. The advantage is that climate-neutral water vapour is the only end product, allowing CO2 emissions to be avoided completely. The project involves voestalpine Stahl GmbH, voestalpine Stahl Donawitz GmbH, and the

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Montanuniversität Leoben.

The transformation of the steel sector is being stalled by several key barriers that must be addressed with absolute priority. The use of the existing financial support options, such as Horizon Europe, partnerships, and the ETS Innovation Fund should be prioritized to the greatest possible extent. This would fast-track innovation in the sector. Subsequently, innovation de-risking mechanisms and funding for cross-sectoral decarbonization should be used to complement the existing mechanisms and address the lack of innovation incentives and capital of sufficient size. Additionally, having a clear regulatory framework and a vision for the successful implementation of key emission reduction technologies is of utmost importance.

To roll out emission reduction technologies, access to sufficient lowinterest investment capital is also needed.

Here, the use of support mechanisms, for example in the form of carbon contracts or other de-risking mechanisms, is advisable.

The competitiveness of a low-CO2 steel sector must be sustained during both the innovation and implementation/rollout stages. The principal threat is that of low-cost foreign competition, which might not be moving – or not moving as fast – towards low-carbon operations as European producers. To minimize the adverse effects of global competition on EU decarbonization efforts, adequate supportive policies should be developed. � Digital Edition - June 2022

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SUPPLY CHAIN

Net-zero through the supply chain The steel industry has no choice, but to begin decarbonizing through investment in sustainable technologies, clean fuels, and raw materials.

However, this challenge is made significantly easier through upstream and downstream businesses on the supply chain working together to lower emissions and reach net-zero. By Nils Naujok, Holger Stamm, and Markus Knopf STEEL faces a Herculean task to meet net-zero emissions deadlines over the next 30 years. While one of the most recycled materials on the planet, it is also one of the dirtiest when it comes to greenhouse gas emissions from its production. The intense heat and energy needed to produce steel makes the industry the largest industrial consumer of coal and one of the most carbon-intensive on Earth. The sector accounts for 2.6 Gt of carbon dioxide emissions annually, making up roughly 10% of the global total.

“To meet global energy and climate goals, emissions from the steel industry must fall by at least 50% by 2050, with continuing declines towards zero emissions thereafter,” the International Energy Association (IEA) wrote in a 2020 report. That will be a daunting task, and producers will need a new energy source for production to decarbonize as well as new raw materials. These requirements will upend a large portion of the mining industry in particular.

Regardless, the steel industry will have no choice but to begin decarbonizing through investment in new furnace technology, energy sources, and raw materials. As one of the basic building blocks of the global economy, steel factors into the production and operations of most industries – from

auto production to aviation to construction to household appliances. That means it contributes to all of their carbon footprints.

With every one of those customers facing pressure to reduce emissions, every one of them will increasingly demand more and more green steel from steel producers and their suppliers.

The industry is already seeing the reshaping of its supply chain as major steel customers begin to look for partnerships that will help them guarantee their supply of low-carbon steel. Recently, automakers BMW and Mercedes Benz invested in two start-up green steelmakers – one in the United States and the other in Sweden.

The investments marked early steps in the

decarbonization of steel production – a process that will require the reinvention of not only how steel is made but essentially a reimagining of the entire steel supply chain.

A supply chain in transition But steel producers won’t have to tackle decarbonization alone, with upstream and downstream businesses on the supply chain beginning to work together on tackling emissions. Besides BMW and Mercedes, there’s a long list of steel industry players establishing alliances or outright buying their way into steel supply chain collaborations. For instance, German steel-producing group SHS and engineering firm Paul Wurth are exploring production

Partner in Oliver Wyman’s Energy and Natural Resources practice, Berlin, Germany Principal in Oliver Wyman’s Energy and Natural Resources practice, Düsseldorf, Germany Principal for energy management in Oliver Wyman’s Energy and Natural Resources practice, Munich, Germany Digital Edition - June 2022

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SUPPLY CHAIN

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hydrogen, are still in development. In the meantime, there are some individual efforts to increase efficiencies that could move the industry forward over the short run.

of low-carbon hot briquetted iron (HBI) in Canada, combining Canadian high grade iron ores and renewable electricity from hydro power.

Another example is Australian mining conglomerate BHP’s collaboration with Chinese steel producer Baowu to support technology and other methods to reduce emissions. BHP also recently invested in start-up Boston Metal, which aims to industrialize the molten electrolysis process.

Finally, Kawasaki Heavy Industries, J-Power, and Shell Japan are working with Australia’s AGL Energy and international partners to produce, liquify, and ship hydrogen to Japan. Hydrogen, which can also produce intense heat, is considered one of most promising energy substitutes for coal and an array of fossil fuels.

Any solution will require a spectrum of technology changes – some of which, like www.steeltimesint.com

Short-term efforts, long-term investments Steel producers can lower emissions in the immediate future by 10% to 30% by applying best available technologies, using higher quality iron ores, and optimizing fuel mix at both blast furnace (BF) and blast oxygen furnace (BOF) operations.

Efforts like these are particularly useful in places like China and India where there is a preponderance of these older facilities and newer techniques and feedstocks can have a material impact on the entire industry’s emissions.

But to realize larger emission reductions will require significant investment in new technologies. Among the most promising are hydrogen-based reduction to produce direct reduced iron (DRI) and specifically HBI, carbon capture, storage and use solutions, and even newer alternatives, such as molten electrolysis. Also pivotal to forward progress will be an increased emphasis on the circular economy, the recycling of scrap steel to replace primary steel production, and a significant expansion of renewable energy capacity.

Oliver Wyman modeled a range of global and key steel-producing regional scenarios, assuming ambitious combinations of technologies and emission-abatement measures. We also assumed changing market shares of BF-BOF and electric arc furnace-based production. While exact timelines are hard to predict, certain trends in raw material consumption for the industry emerged out of our analysis.

Commodity winners and losers Ultimately, this overhaul of steel production will lead to substantially reduced metallurgical coal intake over time. Demand

will drop by up to 50% by 2050 from average levels in 2019 and 2020. While the decline will depend on how fast the largest consumers deploy their efficiency measures, we think it is possible to see significant decreases already in this decade.

For iron ore, the outlook is more stable, but the composition of what’s supplied will continue to change as demand for higher-quality ores increases. These higher grades play a key role in the realization of the first 10% to 30% emission reduction in BF-BOF furnace production. They will also increasingly contribute to reductions achieved by electric arc furnace (EAF) production using DRI/HBI. Already today, these higher grades are fetching significant price premiums.

Even with supply limits on higher-grade iron ores, we forecast a significant demand increase for DRI/HBI, through 2050 – maybe Digital Edition - June 2022

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SUPPLY CHAIN

as much as 200% higher. Given that DRIbased steel will play an important role in the new steel industry, the anticipated marked increase in the trading volume of DRI and specifically HBI suggests the formation of a new commodity market.

Increased use of DRI/HBI in turn will drive demand for hydrogen, not all of which will be green, especially in the beginning.

We expect to see a significant increase in electrolysis capacity beginning in the next decade. By 2050, an additional 100 GW may be required where today there is very little dedicated capacity.

Energy and recycling Both the increasing share of EAF and H2 electrolysis will significantly drive electricity demand, and in particular for electricity generated by renewable energy.

If industries begin to demand green electricity, significantly more capacity will be needed.

Finally, scrap supply will have to increase significantly. This is especially true for China, where supply would have to double to as much as 400 Mt to accommodate a significant increase in EAF-based production. That would envision a jump from 10% of Chinese production being EAF to at least 40% or more.

As a result, the supply chains that today deliver large amounts of iron ore and metallurgical coal – the type of coal used for making steel – to steel producers will now need to switch to providing equally voluminous amounts of electricity and hydrogen, scrap, and DRI/HBI. While eventually the aim will be for these new inputs to be ‘green,’ there is unlikely initially to be enough capacity and supply to achieve that.

Regional impacts What does this mean for various regional economies? Here are some examples of the potential impact: • Australia has several resources it could leverage, including renewable energy and natural gas, to become a leader in hydrogen production. It additionally has vast iron ore deposits that could be used to produce HBI for export or green steel products or semi-finished products.

• Sweden already has ambitious plans to build green steel production leveraging its resources, including carbon-free electricity and iron ore to support domestic car production and other activities.

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• Russia is aiming to use its gas for hydrogen and DRI production.

• China’s steel producers want to start producing high-grade iron ores in places like Africa, in an effort to become less dependent on Australian ore producers and make its own steel production more efficient.

Other examples of how the supply chain will evolve and new steel ecosystems are developing: • The Mining & Metals Blockchain Initiative is testing whether distributed ledger technology can be used to track embedded greenhouse gas emissions in supply chains. Members of the initiative include Anglo American, Glencore, Klöckner & Co, Tata Steel, and the World Economic Forum, among others.

• Brazilian Vale is collaborating with

chains makes it vital and inevitable for energy, technology, engineering, and recycling players to become active in the transformation of the steel supply chain.

This new competition will put pressure on incumbents from mining and steel.

We expect some jostling as players try to seize an early advantage in what will be a $1 trillion-plus transition over the next 30 years.

The bevy of newcomers and the dramatically increased need to co-operate across industries to reduce carbon footprints will lead to a re-evaluation of production locations and new contractual arrangements. It will encourage the formation of new partnerships and symbiotic ecosystems that will share the cost of the transition and develop new markets. One example is a memorandum of understanding signed between Rio Tinto

Kobe Steel and Mitsui to deliver low CO2 metallics to global markets.

• Swedish LKAB is collaborating with steel producer SSAB and Swedish energy firm Vattenfall to develop renewables and hydrogen capacity to replace coking coal by investing between $1 billion and $2 billion per year for up to 20 years. The first deliveries of the green steel will be going to car maker Volvo.

• Australian miner Fortescue plans to build Australia’s first green steel pilot plant and also aims to enter the renewable energy business at a large scale. It has announced several partnerships, including one with South Korean steelmaker Posco and South Korea’s Hyundai Motor Co, to collaborate on green hydrogen.

The importance of renewable power, hydrogen and scrap in these new value

and Nippon Steel to jointly explore and develop low-carbon steel value chains. But many others exist.

The eventual greening of steel is inevitable, and it’s obvious that the metallurgical coal business looks to be one of the biggest losers, with other technologies and commodities, such as renewable electricity and hydrogen, clear winners. Which will come out on top among regions and corporate players remains far less apparent. But given the amount of investment required and the length of time needed to bring product to market, the advantage will go to those willing to move quickly and take calculated and shared risks through partnerships to help create new industrial ecosystems and position themselves along steel’s value chains. � www.steeltimesint.com

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DECARBONIZATION

Steel’s seriously green credentials The ever-expanding application scope of steel and its increasingly integral role in the decarbonization of heavy industries brings the alloy to the fore as a crucial engineering material, says Global Market Insights*

FOR years, nearly every aspect of life, from buildings to cars and beyond, has been influenced by steel in some capacity. As a critical material in construction, automotive, natural gas pipelines, electricity networks, military weapons, and other industrial sectors, the use-cases of steel are vast and continue to expand. In fact, according to a Global Market Insights report, the steel market for automotive and aerospace applications is expected to surpass $175 billion by 2027.

One of the main reasons for the popularity of steel over the years is its versatility. According to estimates from the World Steel Association, more than 3,500 grades of steel are in existence, building a foundation for the modern world. Steel is also renowned for its recyclability, and as a result, has secured an important position in the circular economy.

Considered one of the basic engineering materials, steel has also been critical in the development of novel sustainable technologies and is coming to be a major driving force behind the decarbonization of heavy industries.

satellites and military aircraft.

The coronavirus pandemic has also been a contributor to the growing adoption of additive manufacturing in the aerospace sector. Given the massive halts of global passenger air traffic during the peak of the crisis in 2020, aircraft manufacturers have had to face several challenges and detriments over the past few years.

In order to ready themselves for recovery, many of these manufacturers have

started to embrace digital technologies like additive manufacturing, to enhance fuel efficiencies, cut down lead times, and improve

Escalating use of steel in additive manufacturing for aerospace applications With the rise of the digital era, technologies like 3D printing or additive manufacturing have started to make their mark in various high-performance sectors, particularly aerospace and defense. Aerospace engineers are constantly on the look-out for solutions to make their products stronger, faster, and lighter, which has thrust 3D printing into the limelight as an ideal technology for the production of important structural parts like forgings and castings, in Digital Edition - June 2022

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DECARBONIZATION

the sustainability of air travel in general.

Metal 3D printing, especially, has triggered significant evolution in aircraft production over the past few years. Several aerospace firms and OEMs are ramping up their investment in large-scale metal AM equipment and projects to develop highperformance, mission-critical metal parts designed to accommodate the stringent requirements of modern aircraft.

To illustrate, in March 2021, global engineering firm Renishaw was awarded funding worth £26.4 million by the UK government and industry, via the ATI (Aerospace Technology Institute)

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programme, designed to revolutionize the production of aerospace products in the UK. The LAMDA (Large Scale Additive Manufacturing for Defence and Aerospace) project, spearheaded by Renishaw, was geared towards creating a novel metal 3D printing system, both to mass-produce smaller aircraft parts as well as to fabricate large aerospace components at accelerated production rates and lower costs.

The objective behind the project was to facilitate the production of lighter, smaller aircraft components that would eventually play a major role in helping the aviation sector achieve its net-zero targets.

Materialise made similar efforts in October 2021, partnering with Proponent, an aircraft part distributor, to study how 3D printing could benefit aerospace OEMs. Through the collaboration, the entities envisioned a digital supply chain facilitating on-demand production by integrating additive manufacturing

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into procurement and making 3D printed parts easily available to MROs. While polymeric materials have long been the preferred choice for the development of 3D printed products, of late, material focus is gradually shifting towards metallic materials like steel in additive manufacturing. 3D printed metals are rapidly gaining a stronghold across industries that require high-performance, durable, and lightweight metal components.

Use-cases are growing tremendously within sectors like aerospace, which is set to emerge as a prominent segment of the steel industry and will exhibit a nearly 3.5% CAGR through 2027, as per GMI projections.

This is being supported by various efforts from firms like Desktop Metal, which announced the qualification of Grade 420 stainless steel, a heat-treatable, martensitic stainless steel for high-volume additive manufacturing in October 2021.

Known for its hardness, strength, and corrosion resistance to foods, freshwater, mild acids, and atmospheric elements in a fully hardened state, the 420 SS was designed for use on the Single Pass Jetting (SPJ) technology-based production system platform.

By achieving faster build speeds in metal 3D printing, this announcement was received well by manufacturers looking to mass-produce high-strength 420 SS-based end-use components for high-performance industrial applications like aerospace, defense, and medical, among others.

Similarly, in September 2021, 3D Systems introduced two novel highstrength alloys for metal additive manufacturing on its 3D printing systems. The alloys, including a hardened stainless steel certified M789 (A), were designed for use in various application sectors from automotive to energy to aerospace and more. The certification of M789 for the DMP platform was achieved via 3D Systems’ collaboration with GF Machining Solutions, a machine-tool builder, to accommodate the burgeoning demand for corrosion-resistant, hard tooling steel.

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DECARBONIZATION

Major global initiatives promoting steel as a building block for decarbonization Steel is a building block of the modern economic landscape, featuring in nearly everything from transport infrastructure, buildings, heavy equipment, and consumer goods, among others. More recently, this applicability has expanded to green technologies like public transit, electric vehicles, and wind turbines, which rely heavily on steel-based components and structures.

On the downside, steel is among the most prominent carbon emitters, accounting for almost 7% of GHG (greenhouse gas) emissions worldwide. The conventional process of iron ore-based steel production is the primary source of these emissions, given the use of blast furnaces that require the use of metallurgical coal.

Considering the monumental burden of the steel industry on environmental health, governments and regulatory authorities are making targeted efforts to decarbonize the industry and alleviate its impact. These efforts seem to be paying off; over the past few years, a new solution has been emerging in the form of green steel, which is made from hydrogen instead of coal, creating significant opportunities for the steel market.

According to research from the World Steel Association, the successful Digital Edition - June 2022

implementation of green steel technology could potentially reduce indirect and direct emissions by nearly 20% and 50% as compared to average ore-based steelmaking and scrap-based steelmaking sites respectively. Statistics such as these

indicate a massive change in the steel production landscape, with Green Steel Tracker estimates suggesting that seven out of 10 of the world’s largest steel-producing countries have introduced at least one green steel initiative.

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DECARBONIZATION

In June 2021, for instance, The European Commission and ESTEP (European Steel Technology Platform) introduced the Clean Steel Partnership and e-signed a memorandum of understanding, to pilot and explore groundbreaking technologies capable of reducing CO2 emissions from EU steel production. In alignment with the targets of the European Green Deal, the Clean Steel Partnership was developed to extend support for EU leadership in its efforts to turn the steel industry into a carbon-neutral sector and act as a catalyst for other strategic industries as well.

In November 2021, numerous countries including India, Canada, Germany, the UAE, and the UK signed a pledge under CEM’s Industrial Deep Decarbonization Initiative (IDDI), which was introduced in June the same year. As part of the initiative, which was designed to facilitate global collaboration for the decarbonization of heavy industries, the countries pledged to enhance the adoption of green steel alongside other green procurement principles, and collectively develop a set of targets for 2030.

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part of their numerous efforts to achieve carbon neutrality. This transition to CO2free steel has been facilitated by the firms’ collaboration with H2 Green Steel (H2GS), an up-and-coming steel producer focused on the decarbonization of industry using sustainable resources like green hydrogen.

Steel companies HKM and Thyssenkrupp Steel also inked a partnership with the Dutch port of Rotterdam in May 2021, to examine the import of renewable hydrogen or the production of green steel. Rotterdam is also set to establish a carbon dioxide transport and storage system, which will help store CO2 captured from natural gasderived hydrogen production, as part of the “H2morrow steel” project, which has Thyssenkrupp Steel as a partner.

All-in-all, steel is by far the most versatile, multi-functional, and integral of engineering materials in the modern industrial world. The steel industry has long been the backbone of the developed economy and will continue to serve as a strong and steadfast foundation as the world navigates towards a more sustainable industrial ecosystem in the years to come. �

Major players in the global steel industry and other associated sectors are also blazing the trail for technical innovation and green steel adoption, through a flurry of research efforts and massive investments to support them.

Prominent automotive entities like BMW and Mercedes-Benz, for instance, have committed to integrating the use of green steel in their vehicles from 2025, as

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WIND TURBINES

Molybdenum: essential for wind turbi To prevent the worst outcomes of climate change, renewable energy sources like wind and solar must more than triple their share of global power production. While molybdenum plays a role in several green technologies, it is particularly crucial in wind power generation. Therefore, as demand for wind turbines increases, so will the demand for molybdenum in many of their components.

By Professor Dr.Hardy Mohrbacher*

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WIND TURBINES

ines

*NiobelCon BV & IMOA consultant

According to the World Meteorological Association, both 2020 and 2021 set new records for the level of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere. And July 2021 was Earth’s hottest month on record. The economic slowdown caused by the pandemic did little to curb ambient levels of greenhouse gases, despite a temporary decline in emissions.

Too many essential activities like heating and transportation continue to rely heavily or exclusively on fossil fuels. According to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), if the world keeps emitting at current levels, severe negative effects of climate change are expected, including extreme droughts and floods, mass human displacement and threatened food supplies.

While renewable technologies, mostly wind, solar and hydropower, already account for 25% of all electricity generated today, their share will need to approach 80% by 2050. Vast quantities of both land and raw materials are needed to make this transition. Molybdenum is one such material – an irreplaceable alloying element that provides the mechanical properties needed to withstand the massive forces at play in wind power generation.

Overcoming drivetrain issues Wind power generation focuses the huge and varying forces of wind caught by enormous blades onto relatively small gear teeth and other components. The immense stresses applied by the wind onto components can even damage or destroy the drivetrain. Gearless wind turbines or ‘direct drive’ systems were developed to overcome gearbox failure and raise efficiency. In these systems, the rotor is connected directly to the generator, eliminating the drivetrain. However, most direct drive systems rely on large magnets made from ‘rare earth’ (RE) metals like neodymium. This reliance poses potential supply risks, as demand for RE metals is increasing exponentially for renewables over the next decades. Other applications such as electric vehicles and consumer electronics are also competing for these critical resources. At the same time, RE mining and especially refining is concentrated in just a few countries, adding to the supply risks.

Fortunately, drive train issues can also be resolved by improving the gear steels with the addition of molybdenum. It increases the hardness, strength and toughness of these steels and its supply is not at risk.

Major deposits are found throughout

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the Americas and China, making it geographically balanced.

Currently, gearless drive systems are used primarily in high-power offshore turbines and part of the 3 MW land-based turbines, mostly in Europe. But in addition to the supply chain risks associated with RE magnets, the future trend towards higherpowered onshore turbines also favours designs using gearboxes. Direct drive systems would require extremely heavy, cumbersome generators given the torque requirements of future designs, which makes their widespread use impractical.

Wind turbine overview Currently, of all renewable technologies, wind power has the greatest potential for added molybdenum use. Windmills require by far the largest amount of steel and iron castings, compared to other power generation technologies. While steel accounts for the vast majority of the tower weight (~98%), both materials find use in components of the nacelle – the part of the turbine housing all generating components, including the gearbox. Regarding the latter, steel represents approximately half of the weight. Cast iron is mainly found in the nacelle (40%) and in the rotor (30%). The nacelle and rotor hub can weigh up to 900 tonnes in offshore wind turbines, not including the mass of the blades made from glass fibre-reinforced polymers. Offshore windmills additionally require anchoring structures to the seabed, which are usually steel-fabricated monopiles or tripods.

Wind turbines are rated by the amount of power they can produce under ideal conditions and wind speeds. Onshore wind turbines currently operate at an average rated power of 3 MW, but major turbine manufacturers have already started targeting the market for larger power output in the 5 MW range. For reference, 5 MW of a recently built wind turbine with a capacity factor of 42% is enough to power around 5,000 average-sized EU homes.

Offshore wind turbines are much larger and capable of generating more power: currently they operate at 7 MW but designs for turbines generating up to 16 MW are being explored. In Europe, the current onshore-to-offshore capacity ratio of 80:20 is not expected to change significantly.

Other geographical regions operate a much lower share of offshore turbines, but are expected to approach the European ratio in the future.

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WIND TURBINES

Size and power rating comparison of recent and future models of onshore and offshore wind turbines (Source: Berkeley National Laboratory). For height comparison, the Statue of Liberty in New York City and the Eiffel Tower in Paris are added on the right

The tower of a wind turbine consists of individual ring segments. These are 20-25 metres in length, produced from flat-rolled heavy plates made from carbon steel.

Most modern wind towers have heights of 70 –140 metres and diameters of 4-5 metres. The latest and largest offshore towers are typically manufactured from steel grade S355 (AISI A276) having a yield strength of around 350 MPa (or 50 ksi).

Since molybdenum is only required for the production of plate steels with yield strength levels of 500 MPa and above, it will not be used in the ring segments

The interior of a wind turbine nacelle with drivetrain

of the tower for the foreseeable future.

But molybdenum plays an important role holding the tower together. Tower segments are usually assembled using nuts and bolts up to size M72 (diameter 72 millimetres). Typical bolt steel alloys fulfilling the high demands for strength and toughness are 34CrNiMo6 (1.6582) or 30CrNiMo8 (1.6580), containing molybdenum additions in the range of 0.20.5%.

Gearing up for the wind Molybdenum-containing alloys are most

widely used for powertrain components of windmills. The low rotational speed of the rotor must be transmitted and transformed into a higher one, suitable to drive the generator. Therefore, shafts and gearboxes are required. Due to the criticality of these components in terms of reliability and performance, a combination of excellent strength, toughness and fatigue resistance properties is required.

Quenched and tempered steels such as 42CrMo4 (AISI 4140) are a perfect solution for shafts. Carburizing steels with a CrNiMo alloy concept are the first choice for gear

Wind turbines are difficult to access for maintenance and repair as the nacell sits high above ground. Better materials can reduce the need for costly interventions

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WIND TURBINES

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components. Normally, molybdenum is added to such steels in the range of 0.20.3%.

Torque density However, due to the increasing torque density with the ever-increasing size and power rating of windmills, gear steels are facing more demanding performance requirements. Recent developments in gear manufacturing, inspired by past IMOA projects, indicate that substantial performance improvements are possible by raising the molybdenum content towards 0.5-0.8%. Other potential molybdenum applications could develop in the future, driven by weight reduction demands. As such, austempered ductile iron castings and ultra-high strength plate steels may play an increasingly important role for carrying frames and housings of powertrain aggregates. These alloys today typically have molybdenum additions in the range of 0.3– 0.8%.

Molybdenum-intensive Detailed analysis of the various components in current windmills indicate a molybdenum requirement of 100-120 kg Mo per rated MW. Given the technological development, in particular the increasing power rating of wind turbines, a significant share of the wind power market is predicted to be molybdenum-intensive. Projecting the International Energy Agency’s ‘Beyond 2 degrees scenario’ onto the expected mix of geared and gearless technologies, suggests that molybdenum demand by the wind power industry between now and 2050 should be in the order of 300,000 metric tons, more than the total amount of molybdenum mined in one year.

Molybdenum use in alloys for constructing the necessary heavy-duty transportation and installation equipment, including vessels, cranes and jackup rigs, will appreciably add to this figure.

Ride with the wind!

Powering the world without carbon emissions might seem impossible, but like developing effective Covid-19 vaccines and adapting to the pandemic, humanity is more than capable of rising to the challenge. Whichever of the future scenarios for renewable power generation proves true, molybdenum goes with the wind, and the required volume will be big. �

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HYDROGEN STEELMAKING

Carbon neutrality: the industry’s goal POSCO lays out its roadmap for decarbonization, featuring its hydrogen reduction ironmaking process (HyREX), in an aim to achieve carbon neutrality by 2050. By Kisoo Kim* Global CO2 emissions amounted to about 40 Mt, and South Korea accounts for 2% of the total.1) To play an active role in the global climate crisis, South Korea declared in 2020 that the country would aim to reach carbon neutrality by 2050.

As a manufacturing-intensive country, it is predicted that a significant industrial transition is required for the economy to achieve its net-zero goals, which will include introducing green infrastructure. The steel sector, which is responsible for 14% of the country’s total CO2 emissions, is one of the main industries working to transform its traditional production process, that is, coalbased blast furnace ironmaking.

POSCO, the key material supplier to shipbuilding, automotive and construction industries in South Korea, has also pledged to become carbon neutral by 2050 with a plan to reduce CO2 emissions by 20% in the short-term by 2030 (10% in Scope 1 and 10% in Scope 2&3). This target can be achieved by increasing energy efficiency, replacing coal as a reducing agent and fuel with coke oven gas (COG) and natural gas (NG) in the existing integrated route of steel manufacturing. Green energy steel production from steel scrap will be increased by using electric arc furnaces (EAFs) in the mid-term.

To achieve carbon neutral steelmaking, POSCO will further develop hydrogen ironmaking, and a DRI/HBI reduction technology named HyREX. Benefiting from 30 years of R&D, and a commercialization experience of 250Mt FINEX (Fine Iron Ore Reduction) included in its process, HyREX is expected to be a powerful addition to innovative hydrogen ironmaking technologies. (Fig 1) Low-carbon technology based on the existing FINEX process POSCO owns the expertise and know-how through the long-term development and operation of FINEX, the environmentally-

friendly process of eliminating coking and sintering. In the FINEX process, reduction and melting are progressed in separated reactors. FINEX fluidized bed reactors produce DRI with a reduction degree of approximately 65%, which is then charged into a melter-gasifier to produce hot metal.

The fine ores are charged into the top fluidized bed reactor, and the reaction gas is supplied from the bottom reactor.

The fine ore particles are perfectly mixed by the gas and form the fluidized bed. In current FINEX fluidized beds, the fines ores are reduced by coal gas generated from the melter-gasifier and the reducing gas contains 25% hydrogen. Also, it is easy to separate CO2 and recycle H2 and CO using

a CO2 removal system, since pure oxygen is used instead of air in the melter-gasifier (Fig 2).

HyREX process rechnology sevelopment and commercialization POSCO is willing to develop the HyREX process using hydrogen as a reducing gas based on FINEX fluidized bed technology.

In the HyREX process, the fluidized bed reactors will produce DRI with a reduction degree of 95% using green hydrogen.

The biggest potential competitiveness of HyREX is the direct use of fine iron ores.

At present, the fine iron ore occupies 71% of total seaborne iron ores, while pellet and pellet feed occupy only 13%. While

*Executive vice president, low-carbon process R&D centre, technical research laboratories, POSCO Digital Edition - June 2022

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HYDROGEN STEELMAKING

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Fig 1. POSCO’s roadmap to carbon neutrality

Fig 2. Seven features of the FINEX process

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HYDROGEN STEELMAKING

Fig 3. HyREX, POSCO Hydrogen Ironmaking Process

shaft type hydrogen reduction technology requires high quality pellets, HyREX can use fine iron ores directly.

Also, hydrogen shows better diffusion behaviour compared with coal gas because the molecule size and viscosity of hydrogen are lower when compared with carbon monoxide.2) The fluidization behaviour was also investigated with hydrogen in the POSCO laboratory, and it was confirmed that the fine iron ore and hydrogen gas form a fluidized bed and that a uniform reduction can be obtained.

The HyREX process is composed of multi-stage fluidized bed reactors which are connected in series. An advantage of multi-stage fluidized bed reactors is an easier supply of heat between reactors to compensate the heat deficiency caused by the strong endothermic reaction of

hydrogen reduction (Fig 3).

Two options Two types of downstream processes are considered following hydrogen fluidized bed reactors. The first type of downstream process is to melt DRI with scrap in an EAF, and then proceed to the next steps of secondary refining and continuous casting.

Thus, it is expected that mid-quality steel products such as hot-rolled steels and heavy plates can be manufactured. The other type of downstream process is to produce all the steel grades including high-quality steels such as automotive steels and highgrade silicon (Si) steels. Hydrogen reduced DRI is smelted with carbon loaded in an electric smelting furnace (ESF) to produce the hot metal. Subsequently, the hot metal is processed similarly to the conventional

process of BOF, secondary refining and continuous casting. The latter process is expected to be better in controlling impurity contamination including nitrogen. The production of hot metal by ESF has some disadvantage in terms of CO2 emissions compared to that of molten steel by EAF, but CCUS (Carbon Capture, Utilization and Storage) will be a part of a carbon neutral solution instead.

SNNC (Société de Nickel de Nouvelle Calédonie et Corée), a member of POSCO Group, has been operating the world’s largest ESF since 2008 to produce FeNi(ferro nickel).

Through this, experience and knowledge concerning a large ESF has been accumulated and will serve as a foundation for the development of ESF for hydrogen reduced DRI smelting.

Fig 4. World’s First International Hydrogen Iron & Steelmaking Forum (HyIS 2021)

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HYDROGEN STEELMAKING

HyIS – Hydrogen iron and steelmaking Forum The HyIS (Hydrogen Iron & Steelmaking) Forum in October 2021 has been hosted

by POSCO for technical exchange and information sharing. The collaboration on innovative hydrogen reduction technologies has also been discussed, among global steel manufacturers, engineering and mining companies. A total of 2,028 people participated on and off-line, from 348 institutes in 48 countries including government organizations, academia, and car companies. The participants discussed policies, technologies, and energy supplies needed to achieve carbon neutrality in the steel industry. The common consensus was that not only the technological development, but the cross-functional co-operation of governments, societies, and related industries is crucial for carbon neutrality.

The HyIS 2022 Forum will be held in Stockholm, Sweden, in October, which is co-hosted by SSAB, IVA, NAEK and POSCO, focusing on green steel products, hydrogen for steel works and carbon neutral iron and

steelmaking (Fig 4).

Stable sourcing of raw materials, green hydrogen and power Stable sourcing of raw materials, green hydrogen, and green power are essential for the conversion to carbon neutral steelmaking. It is necessary to foster domestic and foreign bases of scrap, have long-term supply contracts to produce DRI suitable for the process considering economic feasibility, and import green hydrogen from overseas or establish a domestic production system.3) For these reasons, the government’s active support and close co-operation system between steel companies and domestic energy suppliers are very important for carbon neutrality.

Summary POSCO has committed to carbon neutrality by 2050 and is developing HyREX – a hydrogen ironmaking process based on multi-stage fluidized bed reactors, which is directly connected to the electric furnace. Carbon neutrality is the global

57

steel industry’s goal, not a company’s goal.

POSCO, therefore, is willing to develop the carbon neutral steelmaking process in co-operation with global steel companies, hydrogen suppliers and engineering companies.

POSCO hopes that global steelmakers and experts will join the 2022 forum in October and hold various discussions on the common goal of achieving carbon neutrality in the steel industry. �

References 1) Mckinsey Global Institute, ‘The net-zero transition: What it would cost, what it could bring’, McKinsey & Company, January 2022 2) D. Spreitzer and J. Schenk, ‘Reduction of Iron Oxides with Hydrogen – A Review’, Steel Research International, 2019, 90, 1900108 3) A. Doyle and T. Voet, ‘The DRI dilemma: Could raw material shortages hinder the steel industry’s green transition?’, McKinsey & Company, July 2021

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58

IRONMAKING

Low CO2 in blast furnace ironmaking Kobe Steel announces the launch of ‘Kobenable Steel’, Japan’s first low CO2 blast furnace steel, and discusses key strategies to lowering emissions, and developing clean technologies

KOBELCO Group CO2 Emission Reduction Targets The Kobe Steel Group (also known as the KOBELCO Group) is one of the few companies in the world that operates a diverse range of businesses, based on three core business areas: the materials businesses consisting of steel, aluminium, advanced materials and welding; the machinery businesses consisting of industrial machinery, engineering and construction machinery; and the electric power business. Kobe Steel aims to reduce CO2 emissions in its production processes by 30–40% in 2030 (compared to fiscal 2013 levels) and to achieve carbon neutrality in 2050. The company is also working to realize a carbon-neutral society by achieving Digital Edition - June 2022

its fiscal 2030 target of reducing CO2 emissions through its unique technologies, products and services by 61Mt or more.

Low CO2 blast furnace steel – Kobenable Steel Kobe Steel is working to reduce CO2 emissions by leveraging its strengths as a company with diverse businesses, technologies, and human resources. One of the achievements of the company’s efforts was the launch of Kobenable Steel, a low CO2 blast furnace steel product with significantly reduced CO2 emissions during the blast furnace ironmaking process as the first manufacturer of such products in Japan (according to the company’s survey as of 17 May 2022). Kobenable Steel is based on the

KOBELCO Group’s CO2 reduction solution for blast furnace ironmaking announced on 16 February 2021. This technology is a fusion of the Midrex technology of the engineering business and the blast furnace operation technology of the steel business, leveraging Kobe Steel’s strengths.

Technology of Midrex (MIDREX® Process) The MIDREX® Process is a direct reduction ironmaking technology developed by Kobe Steel’s wholly owned subsidiary Midrex Technologies, Inc. in the United States. It is the world’s leading direct reduced iron (DRI) making process, which produces approximately 80% of the world’s DRI produced with natural gas (approximately www.steeltimesint.com

IRONMAKING

without major equipment modification.

With the transition to carbon neutrality quickly becoming a global trend, the company is ready to provide CO2 reduction solutions to achieve carbon neutrality in the global steel industry.

Blast furnace operation technology By charging a large amount of hot briquetted iron (HBI) produced using the MIDREX® Process into the blast furnace and thereby reducing the amount of coke used, CO2 emissions from the blast furnace can be significantly reduced.

In a demonstration test at Kobe Steel’s Kakogawa Works in 2020, it was confirmed that CO2 emissions from the blast furnace process could be reduced by approximately 20% compared to fiscal 2013 levels. In order to reduce the amount of coke by charging a large amount of HBI, there are various technical challenges to overcome such as the destabilization of blast furnaces.

The company made a breakthrough and significantly reduced CO2 emissions from the blast furnace by combining Midrex’s HBI manufacturing technology with its blast furnace operation system which includes HBI charging, AI-based blast furnace operation systems, and advanced pellet production.

60% of the world’s DRI at large). This process uses hydrogen-rich gas reformed from natural gas as a reductant, and pellets processed from powdered ore as the iron source to produce DRI in the shaft furnace. Compared to the blast furnace route (using the blast furnace and the basic oxygen furnace), this process (using DRI and the electric arc furnace) can reduce CO2 emissions in the ironmaking process by 20–40%. Over 80 MIDREX modules are in operation worldwide.

An effective solution In addition, this technology has the advantage that if economical and largescale hydrogen use becomes possible, it will be an effective solution to carbon neutrality www.steeltimesint.com

CO2 reduction effects calculated by mass balance methodology This year, Kobe Steel will start selling low CO2 blast furnace steel in two product categories: Kobenable Premier with 100% reduction rate of CO2 emissions per ton, and Kobenable Half with 50% (compared to fiscal 2018 levels). For the calculation of these CO2 reduction effects, the company has adopted the mass balance methodology by which CO2 reduction effects are allocated to specific steel products.

Methodology The methodology is to allocate specific characteristics to a certain portion of products according to the input amount of raw materials with the characteristics when there is a mix of raw materials with no such characteristics (e.g., low CO2) in the manufacturing process. This approach has been used for products such as recycled plastics, bioplastics, electricity generated from renewable energy sources, and certified food products like cocoa and palm oil, for which separation of product properties are difficult due to the

59

characteristics of the manufacturing process or the supply chain. In the ironmaking process, it becomes possible to reduce the amount of coke used and thereby reduce CO2 emissions by replacing a portion of iron ore with HBI, a raw material for steel that has already been reduced. Using the mass balance methodology, the company allocates the reduction effects to specific low CO2 steel products and adds environmental value to them.

Features of Kobenable Steel Kobenable Steel, manufactured in the same process as the conventional blast furnace method, has the following two features. First, it is available for all types of steel products (sheet, plate, wire rod and bar products) manufactured at Kakogawa Works and the Kobe Wire Rod & Bar Plant.

Second, it maintains the same level of high quality as conventional products. It enables customers to continue to use blast furnace steel products that require high quality, such as special steel wire rods and ultrahigh-tensile strength steel, which are the company’s strengths.

Certified by a third-party For commercialization, reduction rates of CO2 emissions are calculated in accordance with ISO 20915. The calculation method and results are certified by the DNV Business Assurance services UK Ltd., a third-party certification body in the United Kingdom.

At the time of the sale of the products, Kobe Steel will provide the customer with a third-party certificate issued by DNV and a low-CO2 steel product certificate issued by the company.

Sales Volume Kobe Steel achieved a CO2 reduction of approximately 20Kt through the demonstration test of HBI charging conducted in 2020. With this amount of reduction, the sales volume of Kobenable Steel is estimated to be approximately 8Kt on the condition that all the amount of low CO2 steel secured this time is sold as Kobenable Premier. In this manner, sales volume changes according to the actual amount of CO2 reduction. The company will continue to further develop its HBI charging technology for blast furnaces and conduct the study of equipment for mass production.

Continued on page 61...

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IRONMAKING

Emissions reduction intensified In 2030, the company anticipates that the CO2 reduction effects will be increased by a technology that continuously charges HBI into its two blast furnaces, as well as other CO2 reduction and energy saving technologies. If all of these are realized, the company will be able to sell Kobenable

Steel at a scale of 1 Mt/yr (calculated with Kobenable Premier). The company will consider the pace of expansion of the product by 2030 based on demand.

The company will contribute to a green society by leveraging its comprehensive strengths as a corporate group that operates various businesses and provides

61

Kobenable Steel, the first low CO2 blast furnace steel product commercialized in Japan, to a wide range of fields. The group will strive to provide solutions to the needs of society through making the best use of its diverse businesses, technologies, and human resources, in order to continue to be indispensable to stakeholders. �

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Personal Chemistry

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62

FURNACES

Green steel with open bath furnaces

The steel sector is the second largest industrial CO2 emitter, and responsible for approximately 7% of global CO2 emissions.[1,2] Given the Paris Agreement of 2015, the decarbonization of steel production is of urgent importance to support the limitations on global warming.[3] With this in mind, the open bath furnace is an increasingly important solution for reaching decarbonization goals. By Brett Belford1, Leander Reuter2, and Tim Kleier3

1. Senior divisional specialist, green steel; 2. R&D specialist, green steel; 3. Head of green steel, SMS group in Dusseldorf Digital Edition - June 2022

www.steeltimesint.com

FURNACES

63

slag as a by-product.

5. Replace ironmaking plants on existing sites to allow brownfield adaptation while integrating with existing upstream routes for the shortest time to market of the resultant steels.

6. Offer an operational cost base comparable with existing processes.

7. Offer proven versatility in processing low-grade iron ores.

8. Offer opportunities for future adoption of non-fossil utilities and raw materials such as hydrogen and bio-carbon.

In the race to carbon neutrality, the technologies that meet the above listed criteria are limited. One leading candidate is the combination of the well-proven direct reduction of iron using a shaft furnace operating on natural gas (direct reduction plant/DRP), in conjunction with an open bath electric furnace (OBF). Alternative configurations incorporating an OBF can be combined with other reduction technologies producing a DRI feed.

This article aims to emphasize the immediacy of the need for mature technologies to initiate and sustain steel decarbonization, and suggest the OBF as a candidate for short-term deployment by summarizing its key attributes and advantages.

IN the steelmaking value chain, targeting CO2 reductions in the ironmaking stage of the conventional blast furnace (BF) – basic oxygen furnace (BOF) route offers the largest opportunities. The BF-BOF route accounted for 73% of steel produced in 2020.[4] With an average footprint of 1.9 CO2, eq. per ton of crude steel[5,6], decreases in emissions of this dominant sector offer the largest reductions. Fig 1 Multiple technology options are emerging www.steeltimesint.com

in the race to decarbonize iron production.

But to be a viable short-to-medium-term candidate, the technology must: 1. Offer substantial CO2 footprint reductions against the conventional BF-BOF route.

2. Be in a state of immediate technology readiness.

3. Be capable of producing millions of tons of hot metal per annum.

4. Be capable of producing value-adding

The task at hand The immediate steel decarbonization task is substantial. The International Energy Agency (IEA) projects that the global steel industry has to cut total emissions by at least 50% by 2050.[2,7] However, despite stagnant or even slightly decreasing steel consumption per capita globally, overall demand is expected to rise due to population growth until at least 2050.

[2,5,8] In consequence, specific emissions will have to decline even more by at least 60% to meet total emission targets.[2] The corresponding scenarios developed by the IEA can be observed in Fig 2.

When comparing current national netzero targets with their respective national integrated steelmaking production in 2020, a whopping 35 - 37 Mt of production have to be decarbonized every single year from today until 2050 in order to meet those net zero targets (Fig 3).

Increasing scrap availability and recovery rate, coupled with a shift towards a larger share of secondary steelmaking, will enable a portion of the emission cuts based on Digital Edition - June 2022

64

FURNACES

Fig 1.Share of world crude steel production by technology route in 2020.[4]

Fig 2. Possible future world crude steel production with corresponding CO2 emission targets

Fig 3. Crude steel production by BF-BOF route per region in conjunction with national/regional net zero targets.[4]

available technology and processes.

Overall, finite availability of steel scrap puts a limit on this emission reduction potential. Low-gangue ore feed for natural gas or hydrogen-based direct reduction and immediate melting in an electric arc furnace (NG DRI-EAF or H2 DRI-EAF route) suffers from the same problem, but with projected declining raw material availability and quality. As per Fig 4, the IEA foresees a total production share of 380Mt/yr based on direct reduced iron, of which more than 50% would have to be processed in electric reduction smelters due to insufficient highgrade ore supply for economic EAF melting.

2. In-house knowledge on the design, construction and operation of DRPs and electric reduction smelters.

3. Proven references for the DRP at high throughputs utilizing low-grade iron raw materials.

4. Proven references for high-powered electric reduction furnace technology.

5. Proven references for best available technologies in emission reduction and granulation.

As a leading supplier of steelmaking plants, the SMS group is uniquely positioned to offer a significantly decarbonized ironmaking route. This ability rests on the multi-process knowledge base summarized in Fig 5, complementing the above listed drivers for short term deployment of DRP-OBF plants.

To complement the strong grounding in each of the foundational elements of the DRP-OBF technology route, SMS group has to date undertaken numerous green iron studies for leading international steel producers looking to identify decarbonization roadmaps for their individual sites and circumstances. Each of these studies is unique, with no one-sizefits-all solution for each client nor for each site.

At a macro level, the region in which the plant is located is driving the decarbonization timeline, affecting the availability and price of feed stocks and utilities, determining the future links to green power and hydrogen networks, and

Fig 4. Estimated shares of steel production by route in

Experience and short-term enablers for steel decarbonization Against the backdrop of the immense task at hand, it is clear that immediate progress must be made. To successfully deploy a large-scale DRP-OBF plant in the short term, qualifying suppliers should demonstrate key attributes that are already entrenched in their organization: 1. Foundational knowledge of the design and operation of the BF-BOF route.

Digital Edition - June 2022

2050 by a total forecast of 2000 mio tCS p.a.[2]

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FURNACES

Fig 5. SMS group‘s technology portfolio for the primary stage of steelmaking

Fig 6. Configuration of three circular OBFs linked to an associated 2.5 Mt/yr DRP

driving the technology selections to manage the ‘green’ handling of waste streams.

Additionally, the regional price of CO2 emissions and the impact of regional import barriers for high CO2 footprint steels will continue to alter the medium- and longterm operational expenditure of certain production routes.

The SMS group’s combination of the key enablers to immediately deploy an ironmaking alternative, coupled with the growing experience in practical application of this technology to real-world sites, makes us a leading partner for short-term decision making and execution of decarbonizing existing integrated or green field steel plants.

Open bath furnace technology and its suitability as a major ironmaking alternative.

A key advantage of the DRP-OBF is that it can be adopted within the integrated route, or installed on a greenfield site. The combination of the DRP and OBF replaces the BF and its associated sintering, stove and coke facilities. www.steeltimesint.com

The ideal combination of a DRP and associated OBFs is to have both installed immediately alongside one another. This enables the DRI to be fed at an elevated temperature directly to the OBF, making use of the sensible energy to lower the specific energy consumption.

The upper limit on OBF throughput from a single vessel is constrained currently at circa 1.5 Mt/yr hot metal production. The

65

current proven ceiling on shaft furnace DRP production is 2.5 Mt/yr DRI. A viable arrangement for such a configuration is a freestanding DRP linked via hot feed conveyor to at least two OBFs. Fig 6 presents a layout of three circular OBFs associated with a 2.5 Mt/yr DRP. An alternative configuration linked to the same DRP capacity could be only two rectangular OBFs. Either configuration could satisfy the required throughput, with the final decision often resting on the particular needs of a given site.

The OBF does have the distinct advantage that it can be uncoupled from the upstream DRI production step. The OBF can accept metallic feed in the form of HBI or DRI that is produced in an alternative location and transported to the site at which the smelting takes place.

Another advantage is that the products of the OBF largely mimic those of the blast furnace. As seen in Table 1 and Table 2, both the hot metal and slag properties are comparable. Specifically for the slag, fluxing agents can be dosed to the OBF to fine-tune slag composition. In addition, the DRP-OBF process is not limited to feed from a high-quality oxide pellet source. The nature of the reducing environment in the OBF means that the DRP-OBF combination can consume BF-grade pellets with higher gangue quantities and still deliver high yields and BF-type slags with FeO contents less than 1 wt.-%.

Fig 7 presents the range of suitability of global iron ores mined for the EAF and OBF processes. The span suitable for the OBF is seen from iron ore sources with a total iron content as low as 58 wt.-%Fe to those of the highest quality.

In addition to the hot DRI fed to the

Fig 7. Distribution of global iron ore production by iron content with given ranges of suitability for the EAF and OBF process

Digital Edition - June 2022

FURNACES

Element

Blast furnace [wt.-%]

Open bath furnace [wt.-%]

C

4.5

4.5

Si

0.75

<0.5

Mn

0.13 – 0.15

0.14

S

0.02 – 0.025

0.025 – 0.03

P

0.10 – 0.12

0.02 – 0.03

Fe

94.6 – 94.8

94.7 – 94.8

1,480 – 1,500 °C

1,490 – 1,510 °C

Tapping temperature

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of high-quality hot metal that can be integrated into existing steelmaking sites.

Moreover, this technology can be deployed immediately to assist in the realization of short-term decarbonization goals. In the future, further CO2 reduction will be possible in the same DRP-OBF plants through integration of green hydrogen and bio-carbon sources. �

Table 1. Element composition of blast furnace hot metal and open bath furnace hot metal Slag component

Blast furnace [wt.-%]

Open bath furnace [wt.-%]

CaO

41 – 43

40.5 – 41.5

SiO2

37 – 38

36.5 – 37.5

MgO

7.3 – 7.5

7.0 – 7.5

Al2O3

10.5 – 11.0

10.5 – 11.0

0.3 – 0.5

0.6 – 0.7

S

FeO

0.75 – 0.80

0.50 – 0.60

MnO

0.15 – 0.20

0.20 – 0.25

*TiO2

0.60 – 0.65

0.50 – 0.60

Other

0.8

Tapping temperature

2

1500 – 1550 °C

1550 °C

* TiO2 in the final slag is driven by the feed materials.

Table 2. Composition of blast furnace slag and open bath furnace slag

OBF, up to 5% of the OBF material feed can be comprised of agglomerated waste or free-flowing scrap as shown in Fig 8. This allows steel plants to consume wastes arising from their existing facilities by utilizing an inexpensive agglomeration process to prepare these for addition to the furnace. BOF sludge and mill scale are popular considerations, as well as any waste streams high in fluxing components such as CaO. The addition of waste and scrap to the furnace does come at a power penalty, with 1% waste feed accounting for an increase in OBF real power of between 2 - 3%.

The ability to generate a BF-type slag that can be used as a clinker substitute by the cement industry is not a factor to be overlooked. It offers the plant owner a desirable, sellable by-product, thus improving OPEX potential, and reduces the CO2 footprint of the cement industry downstream significantly.

Given that multiple OBFs are required to accept and process the HDRI feed from the largest DRPs, an inherent benefit is the flexibility of the hot metal tapping. Multiple tap holes, tapping sequences and quantities can be adjusted to exactly match the downstream steel plant requirements, with a reduced dependency on the hot metal buffering typical of existing blast furnaces.

www.steeltimesint.com

Conclusion The Paris Agreement’s limitations on global warming and regional net-zero goals place steel producers under immense pressure to decarbonize rapidly. Accompanied with forecasted rising steel demand, the current CO2 footprint of the dominating integrated steel route has to be lowered. This can be achieved by reducing the emissions of the CO2-intensive ironmaking stage. The market-ready combination of the DRP-OBF offers the production of suitable quantities

References [1] H. Ritchie, M. Roser, P. Rosado, Our World in Data 2020.

[2] International Energy Agency, Iron and Steel Technology Roadmap: Towards more sustainable steelmaking, OECD 2020.

[3] UNFCCC, in United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change 2015.

[4] World Steel Association, World Steel in Figures 2021, Brussels, Belgium 2021.

[5] World Steel Association, Sustainability Indicators: 2021 report, Brussels, Belgium 2021.

[6] World Steel Association, Steels’s Contribution to A Low Carbon Future and Climate Resilient Societies: World Steel Position Paper, Brussels, Belgium 2018.

[7] M. R. Allen, H. de Coninck, O. P. Dube, O. Hoegh-Guldberg, D. Jacob, K. Jiang, A. Revi, J. Rogelj, J. Roy, D. Shindell, W. Solecki, M. Taylor, P. Tschackert, H. Waisman, Technical Summary: An IPCC Special Report on the impacts of global warming of 1.5 °C 2018.

[8] R. Haslehner, B. Stelter, N. Osio, Steel as a Model for a Sustainable Metal Industry in 2050 2015.

Fig 8. DRP-OBF valuation chain indicating the circulation of waste and scrap

Digital Edition - June 2022

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WASTE GASES

From waste gases into dollars

Microbes have the potential to transform the current climate crisis; turning pollution into chemicals, and reducing fossil oil across the value chain. With LanzaTech, this technology can be utilized to both decarbonize the industry, and create valuable products for the economy. By Tom Dower1, Greg Archer2, and Sanjeev Manocha3 THE climate emergency, evolving customer demands, and the increasing costs of carbon emissions are now driving the transition to green steel. With 70% of global blast furnaces scheduled to be relined by 2030, the transition is rapid, and both risks and opportunities to steel producers are huge. There is no silver bullet solution to decarbonize the sector.

Rather, eliminating carbon emissions will be achieved through the integration of multiple technologies to deliver bespoke solutions suited to the local market and circumstances. Among the options is an innovative carbon capture and use technology developed by LanzaTech. This uses the power of biology to feed the carbon-rich waste gases to micro-organisms which transform the pollution into ethanol

and a range of other chemicals. These valuable products are the feedstock for essential materials as diverse as textiles, plastics and jet fuel. The technology creates value from a polluting liability and in doing so reduces fossil oil and gas extraction across the value chain, creating a more secure energy paradigm and a circular carbon economy.

Climate emergency The Earth has already warmed by more than 1˚C and could exceed the critical 1.5˚C threshold by the end of this decade unless global emissions are cut by 45% (from 2010 levels) and net-zero emissions achieved by 2050. In response, countries globally are accelerating efforts to reduce dependence on fossil fuels, pricing emissions and

regulating polluters. Energy price spikes exacerbated by the Russian invasion of Ukraine are in turn driving global inflation and an increased focus on energy and food security.

Steel accounts for seven to nine per cent of global CO2 emissions and demand for green or lower carbon steels from customers, like the automotive industry, is creating an increased urgency to cut, and eventually eliminate, carbon emissions.

Notably, emission trading schemes, which set a cap on emissions and require emitters to purchase credits to cover greenhouse gases released, are expanding beyond Europe. In North America, emissions trading operates in California and 12 north-eastern US states plus two in Canada with a trial scheme in Mexico. However, the price of

1. Vice president, public policy. 2. European policy director. 3. Director of business development at Lanzatech Digital Edition - June 2022

www.steeltimesint.com

WASTE GASES

carbon in North America is typically an order of magnitude lower than in the EU where prices have remained around €80 per ton of CO2 throughout 2022. In Asia, South Korea operates a successful emissions trading scheme and China has a two-tier approach with controls at both a national level and in major cities. Japan also operates two city level schemes. As pressure grows on countries to deliver promised emissions reductions, the geographical coverage of schemes is expected to expand as the available carbon budgets shrink causing the cost of emissions to rise.

Around the world, steelworks are ageing with 40% of blast furnaces globally due for relining by 2025, and 30% by 2030. With each relining costing around €100m, this presents a critical decision-making moment for the industry. A business-as-usual approach is likely to result in increasing the unsustainable costs of carbon emissions.

The average steelworks today emits two tons of CO2 per ton of steel and with the rising price of carbon, emissions will increasingly squeeze margins and erode the commercial viability of unabated production. Selecting and integrating the right suite of technologies is crucial – but the best combination is highly dependent upon local circumstances and will evolve over time; there are no silver bullets.

The majority of steel producers are already working to optimize and improve energy and resource efficiency to remain www.steeltimesint.com

competitive. In addition, some are cutting emissions by progressively replacing solid fossil fuels with sustainable biomass or biochar which is most likely to be an option in areas with substantial biomass resources, such as Australia or Brazil.

However, considerable care will be needed in identifying sustainable biomass supplies to ensure that the growing of energy crops or harvesting of biomass for use in steel production does not drive land use change or impact biodiversity.

Alternatively, where gas supplies are readily available, solid fossil fuels can be substituted by natural gas in a direct

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reduced iron furnace that reduces emissions from about two tonnes of CO2 per tonne of steel to 1.2 tons or less using natural gas, or potentially biomethane, which can also be used in combination with carbon capture. However, switching from solid fuels to gas comes with significant capex and energy costs.

Going further and displacing the natural gas with low-carbon hydrogen will progressively reduce, and could ultimately eliminate, most of the carbon emissions.

But using only hydrogen to reduce the iron oxide presents major challenges with storage and melting of direct reduced iron.

Producing the huge quantities of hydrogen required also represents a major challenge.

Green hydrogen, made through electrolysis of water using renewable electricity, requires both large amounts of water and massive generation of renewable electricity.

There are already multiple demands on the small quantities of green hydrogen that are starting to become available and the competing demands for renewable electricity, notably to decarbonise electricity grids and electrify the transport and domestic heat sectors, are considerable.

Only small amounts of green hydrogen are likely to be available for steel production in the foreseeable future.

Steel recycling Maximising steel recycling is always beneficial and a scrap-based electric arc furnace emits less than 0.5 tons of CO2 and is comparatively low capex. But scrap availability is limited, and it is a significant challenge to produce higher quality steels due to tramp elements such as other metals present in many scrap supplies.

To complement fuel switching and recycling, carbon capture and storage (CCS) of the CO2 may be viable in some locations such as the UAE, Norway, the Netherlands and the USA where there are natural storage sites and some existing pipeline networks. But in other locations the costly infrastructure to transport and store CO2 will be prohibitive. In contrast, carbon capture and utilization (CCU), generates a new value stream with little to no changes in the existing steel making technologies or new infrastructure needs. This can replace heat and electricity generation through combustion of the flue-gases or in less advanced production sites’ flaring of waste gases.

With LanzaTech, carbon recycling Digital Edition - June 2022

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WASTE GASES

technologies transform waste gases (off-gases) containing carbon monoxide (CO), hydrogen (H2), and CO2 into ethanol and other products. This provides steel producers with an economical, sustainable, and flexible means of creating value from waste off-gas through conversion into sustainable products. The technology has been successfully deployed in two commercial operating facilities at a steel and ferro alloy mill, with seven additional commercial plants in construction and several more in the engineering phase. Depending on the feedstock and geography, this gas fermentation technology can reduce emissions by up to 90% and in the process make intermediates for producing the chemicals, fuels and materials on which society relies. This is the circular economy in action.

Low carbon chemicals produced through the LanzaTech process have been used in surfactants for detergents by Unilever.

L’Oréal has used the ethanol as a building block to make polyethylene for packaging; and fashion brand Zara produced a boutique range of dresses made with polyester fibres, all made with industrial

carbon emissions directly captured and repurposed through LanzaTech technology.

CarbonSmartTM products can either mechanically recycled or chemically recycled using LanzaTech’s process, which couples gasification with gas fermentation. Through this chemical recycling process, end of life solid wastes are transformed to a synthesis gas that is converted by the microbes in the same way as industrial emissions. This enables the carbon to be infinitely recycled, locking it into the circular economy.

Using biology enables multiple chemical products to be produced from recycled

carbon using a wide range of waste gases.

Steel mills can also switch production between valuable products as desired without changing the equipment and feedstock and while using a simple biological process. Traditional oil refineries and petrochemical facilities require numerous complex reactor steps and large-scale complexes to achieve product flexibility. LanzaTech technology is also future-proof as it can utilize a variety of gas streams without any noticeable alterations to equipment or technology. So, if the steel plant decided to move on from blast furnace to DRI, the technology will still integrate with new gas streams.

In response to the climate emergency the steel industry is reducing its emissions and will ultimately become carbon neutral and move towards producing green steel by 2050. But as the industry transitions there is no single pathway but a range of solutions that will both compete and integrate to lower emissions. LanzaTech has the potential to transform carbon liabilities into valuable products for industries with carbon rich waste streams and create a circular carbon economy. �

The event format is a niche trade exhibition where people can arrange meetings with a number of suppliers and industry experts in one place. Visitors and exhibitors can attend the free conference sessions to hear from industry experts.

These exhibitions bring together international experts, hollow and container manufacturers and businesses that use glass containers, to discover the latest innovations which include energy efficiency, quality control, packaging, logistics and decorative possibilities.

LATIN AMERICA 2024

8-9 February | Seoul, South Korea

15-16 March | Istanbul, Turkey

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Ken Clark Sales Director +44 (0)1737 855117 kenclark@quartzltd.com

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www.steeltimesint.com 23/05/2022 14:28

AEROSPACE

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A greener future for aerospace Electrified aircraft are expected to reach widespread use in 2035

As one of the largest contributors to global CO2 emissions, there’s an urgent pressure on the aerospace industry to provide greener aircraft that are lighter and can travel for longer distances. However, achieving this requires working with tough-to-machine aluminium and heat-resistant super alloys (HRSAs). Here, Sébastien Jaeger* explains how aerospace OEMs can adopt advanced tooling solutions to sustainably machine these tough components.

ACCORDING to the World Economic Forum (WEF), “Achieving net-zero CO2 emissions by 2050 will not only help create an environmentally sustainable future, but also ensure a financially resilient and competitive aviation industry as a whole.” However, while e-mobility has become increasingly established in the automotive industry – and August 2021 saw electric vehicle sales overtake sales of diesel in the UK – these developments will take longer to materialise in aerospace.

Generally, electrified aircraft are not expected to reach widespread use until 2035. Lonely Planet reports that – although easyJet hopes to run electric planes on

routes under 311 miles (500km) by 2030 and Norway aims to make all short-haul flights electric by 2040 – “we won’t be flying long-haul on rechargeable jumbos any time soon: the batteries are simply too heavy.”

So, while batteries do need to become lighter to be feasible, there is also a growing onus on original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) to manufacture lighter components to counterbalance the problem. We can be sure that aluminium – specifically, new types of aluminium with greater strength, fatigue resistance and other attributes will be used to make these systems lighter.

We’re also seeing an increased use of new heat resistant super alloys (HRSAs).

In fact, HRSAs are already used in aircraft parts that face extreme performance demands because they retain their hardness when facing intense heat. These materials’ properties will prove essential, as one approach to more sustainable air travel will be to burn the engines harder and hotter.

Components must also be produced to tighter tolerances and more varied designs. As with e-automobiles, tomorrow’s electrified aircraft designs – including the airframes and the engines – will vary more from manufacturer to manufacturer than existing internal combustion-engined craft.

*Industry solution manager – aerospace – for Sandvik Coromant www.steeltimesint.com

Digital Edition - June 2022

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AEROSPACE

For the airframe, some OEMs are exploring delta shape, blended wing body and strut braced wing concepts. Other OEMs are sticking to traditional ‘big tube, wings and an engine’ designs.

There will also be different forms of engine architecture like electrified, batterydriven or electromagnetic, or hybrid engines where current models are assisted by electric power motors. OEMs will be required to produce an increasing variety of components to tight tolerances while also finding new ways to reduce noise, weight and emissions – all factors that influence how electric systems perform.

But aluminium and HRSA components are difficult to machine, so achieving this sustainably and cost-effectively will be a challenge.

Rapid progress One path to producing lighter and more fuel-efficient aircraft is through additive manufacturing (AM) techniques. AM allows the development of very complexshaped customized parts and functional products to tight-tolerances, so difficult-tomachine parts like lattices can be machined more easily. According to findings by the software company Dassault Systemes, “in Digital Edition - June 2022

the aerospace sector, weight reduction from AM processes can result in energy savings of up to 25%,” while “each kilogram (2.2 lbs) of weight loss on a flight can save up to $3,000 in fuel annually.”

But is AM manufacturing sustainable? A study, co-authored by the Department of manufacturing engineering at Romania’s Technical University of Cluj-Napoca, describes AM as “a great alternative to traditional manufacturing (TM) methods like injection molding, die-casting or machining.” It continues: “AM has the potential to lower costs and to be more energy-efficient than conventional processes.”

AM will also have a crucial effect on the manner and diversity of how products are manufactured. Advantages can include reduced carbon emissions, less material usage and less transportation because parts can instead be made in-house instead of imported.

Manufacturers can also produce more complex, compact and innovative aerospace parts through rapid prototyping. Rapid prototyping refers to several different techniques, but the goal is to quickly produce a tangible 3D prototype from a computer aided design (CAD) file. With

these prototypes, small volume trials of new materials can be performed before full-scale manufacturing to ensure components are made with the utmost innovation, quality and precision.

We’ve looked at how aerospace OEMs can adopt new methods to produce more complex components. But what about having the right tools for the job – particularly when machining tough aluminium and HRSAs? These materials necessitate the use of tools with higher wear resistance and longer tool life. That’s why Sandvik Coromant developed the S205 grade for steel inserts used in turning. S205’s metallurgy includes an Inveio® layer of tightly packed, uni-directional crystals.

This creates a strong protective barrier around the insert to strengthen the tool and enhance its mechanical properties.

The insert has already proven useful in manufacturing a range of aircraft components including engine turbine discs, rings and shafts. Sandvik Coromant’s customers have already reported 30 to 50% higher cutting speeds with S205 compared with competing HRSA turning grades.

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AEROSPACE

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To this end, Sandvik Coromant is supporting its customers in aerospace with, what we call a ‘components solution’.

Holistic approach We have considered manufacturing processes and tools, but how can we best combine the two? After all, time can be wasted in putting together a fullyintegrated solution if the systems aren’t designed to play well together.

To this end, Sandvik Coromant is supporting its customers in aerospace with, what we call ‘a components solution’. The solution has several stages including looking at the machine requirements and time studies to examine the cost-per-component.

Also, analyzing production methods at the run-off, related both to MethodsTime Measurement (MTM) and end-user processes. The components solution also includes computer-aided manufacturing (CAM) programming and project management of local or cross-border projects.

For one Sandvik Coromant customer who was experiencing chip breaking problems in its production, the components solution allowed us to spot the cause and devise a solution. For the customer, Sandvik Coromant’s specialists developed a new strategy with dynamic drive curves that allowed us to control the chip breaking in every moment. We called this new www.steeltimesint.com

approach ‘scoop turning’, and now have a patent over it. With scoop turning, the customer achieved an 80% cycle time reduction with great chip control and doubled tool life.

What’s more, the customer was able to reduce its use of four machines down to one, reducing the need for multitasking, with more secure machining processes and green light production.

Reduced machine usage and the ability to complete production runs with fewer tool changeovers, thanks to tougher machining grades like S205, will be key to more sustainable aircraft production.

Software will also play a vital role, such as the CoroPlus® Tool Guide, which is part of Sandvik Coromant’s digital portfolio.

Customers can make crucial decisions on the choice of tool and cutting parameters before they have even commenced production.

Close the loop Aside from new approaches to tools and manufacturing, aerospace OEMs can also turn to manufacturing. According to a report by the Air Transport Action Group (ATAG), Kaiser, which is the company that supplies aluminium to Boeing, now employs

a closed-loop recycling system – one of the largest programmes of its kind in the industry.

Kaiser estimates that around 10 million kilograms of offcut and scrap metal will be reused by the industry, each year, through the scheme.

At Sandvik Coromant, we have initiated our own circular system for recycling carbide tools whereby we buy-back customers’ worn-out carbide tools and reuse them to make brand new ones.

As a result, most of the raw materials used in Sandvik Coromant’s cemented carbide tools come from scrap. We practice sustainable business in an environment of limited resources and minimize excessive waste. By doing this, we’ve found making tools from recycled material requires 70% less energy, while 40% less carbon dioxide is emitted.

There is mounting pressure on the aerospace industry to manufacture greener aircraft that are lighter and travel for longer distances. However, with the right processes and tools in place – not to mention a more holistic approach to manufacturing – aerospace OEMs can do their bit to help establish a greener future for aerospace. � Digital Edition - June 2022

Furnaces International brings readers a selection of technical features focusing on all aspects of the international furnaces market, as well as industry news, investments, and the latest products and projects Published quarterly in a digital format, Furnaces International and the new monthly newsletter, are sent to the inbox of over 25,000 industry professionals.

As publishers of Aluminium International Today, Steel Times International and Glass International, we are able to compile this knowledge and bring you the latest developments on: • Energy Efficiency • Hot Repairs

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27/10/2021 11:47

SUSTAINABLE

STEEL

STRATEGIES SUMMIT 20-21 SEPTEMBER 2022 IN ASSOCIATION WITH

STEEL TIMES INTERNATIONAL

The Sustainable Steel Strategies Summit 2022, brought to you by

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the makers of the Future Steel Forum and Steel Times International, is shaping up to be an exciting two-day virtual event aimed exclusively at the global steelmaking industry.

As the steel industry strives for a more sustainable future, the Sustainable Steel Strategies Summit will hear what the steelmakers themselves have to say about climate change and how they intend to make greener steel in the near future.

Alongside the two-day conference and virtual exhibition, participants will have the opportunity to network with new contacts, arrange video meetings and exchange resources and information.

If you would like to present a paper at the Sustainable Steel

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CALL FOR SPEAKERS

Submit your speaker application before 29 July 2022.

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21/06/2022 13:31

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PERSPECTIVES Q&A: TENOVA

Great change is exciting and scary Amid a period of great change, Tenova has been committed to innovation, says Paolo Argenta*.

Evolution is a challenge, which can be scary, as so many factors are out of a company’s control, but the uncertainty has provided Tenova with an exciting opportunity to develop and make crucial progress

1.

How are things going at TENOVA? Is the steel industry keeping you busy?

Recently the market has been good for us, both because the overall metallurgical industry (Tenova is supplying technologies to extract and treat several materials, not only steel) is in good shape, and because we are recognised leaders on technologies and commodities that are crucial for the energy transition and circular economy trends.

2.

What is your view on the current state of the global steel industry? And what about the future?

The steel industry has had its ups and downs globally, but the recent past has been good on average. Now we are on the verge of a period of major change, and I see steel playing a key role in the future of our lives and, therefore, the demand will be there for sure.

3.

In which sector of the steel industry does TENOVA mostly conduct its business?

Working both upstream and downstream of the steel value chain, we provide clients with a fully integrated range of high-quality products, technologies and services, in particular in the field of metal making (DRI, EAF and secondary metallurgy), hot forming, cold rolling and processing. It is also important to underline that with our products we are serving the processing industry for aluminium, ferroalloys, copper, nickel, cobalt, lithium, silicon, rare earths, vanadium, uranium, and many more materials.

4.

Where in the world are you busiest at present?

We are busy almost everywhere, but there are some underlying trends that are

evolving in different geographical areas.

We see areas where governments are more ‘hands on’ in the economy (such as Europe, Japan, China, Russia) that are pushing strong on major decarbonization projects that need financial support to happen. North America is pushing on EAF production and flat products especially, to cover their ‘internal’ needs; moreover, in the US, we are supplying the most advanced strip processing line for topquality non-grain-oriented silicon steel in the world. China is pushing EAFs too, but mostly for long products. India and South America are also busy areas of our market.

applications where weight makes the difference (i.e. aerospace and automotive) but new, light, high strength steel produced by modern steel plants will reduce the gap between the two materials for light applications.

7.

What are your views on Industry 4.0 and steelmaking and how, if at all, is TENOVA using it?

Digitalization and robotics are trends we embraced a few years ago; today we can say that most of our products offer digital/robotic solutions that can help our customers to have a more efficient and safe production system.

8.

Hydrogen steelmaking appears to be the next big thing. What’s your view?

We resumed our work on hydrogen steelmaking in 2015 (the first activities date back over 30 years) and in 2017, we landed the agreement to supply key components and process to the HYBRIT pilot plant – the first DRI plant running on 100% hydrogen. Since then, we have been co-operating with HYBRIT for their future developments and we have engaged with many other steelmakers on the subject. In 2020, we landed an order for Salzgitter for another pilot plant. Most of the DRI plants we are discussing and supplying under the ENERGIRON® name (jointly with Danieli) are hydrogen-ready.

5.

Can you discuss any major steel contracts you’re working on?

Due to confidentiality agreements, you will forgive me if I will not reveal any detail of our contracts but I can assure you there are a few big projects brewing.

6.

Where does TENOVA stand on the aluminium versus steel argument?

Aluminium usage will grow in all

9.

Are you finding that your customers are looking to companies like TENOVA to offer them solutions in terms of energy efficiency and sustainability?

In a hard-to-abate industry like ours, energy efficiency and sustainability have always been crucial topics. However, we experienced an acceleration of concrete

*Executive vice president of the upstream business unit of Tenova Digital Edition - June 2022

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PERSPECTIVES Q&A: TENOVA

plans for decarbonization following the pandemic. We have a technology portfolio that suits our customers’ needs and can make a substantial contribution towards the energy transition of our industry, both by allowing our customers to abate emissions from production and by designing technologies to extract and produce the metals needed to enact the energy transition – I’d like to mention lithium and silicon steels.

10. How quickly has the steel industry responded to ‘green politics’ in terms of making the production process more environmentally friendly?

Different countries have reacted differently, big players have reacted differently than smaller ones, and different steel buyers have reacted differently too.For the sake of our planet, I trust that the end result will be that the steel industry will do its part to fight climate change. What will happen between now and then is difficult to predict.

11. Where does TENOVA lead the field in terms of steel production technology?

Our ambition is to be the number one or close to it in all the niches in which we operate, and innovation is one of our guiding commitments. Tenova is a peer of reference within our industry, especially for responsible, reliable, and environmentally friendly technologies and solutions.

12. How do you view TENOVA’s development over the short-tomedium term?

We are recognizing that in this period of

www.steeltimesint.com

change, most steelmakers will be looking for flexible solutions to weather the storm and seize the market opportunities.

We are optimistic that our market share should improve. Likewise, we are forecasting growth on commodities that are strongly related to the energy transition such as lithium, nickel, cobalt, silicon, on which we hold a strong market position.

13. What is TENOVA’s experience of the Chinese steel industry?

The Chinese steel industry has shown a growing commitment towards reducing its environmental impact. An example was the conversion of traditional steel plants with electrical steelmaking, reducing the share of blast furnace (BF) utilization. In this context, we were awarded several contracts to install our EAF Consteel® Evolution, a unique solution on the market with great advantages in terms of savings in electrical consumption, high productivity, high quality steel, and safety. Another important milestone in China for Tenova was the signing of the contract with the HBIS Group for the implementation of the Paradigm Project, a high-tech hydrogen energy development and utilization plant, which includes a 600Kt/yr ENERGIRON DRI plant – the first powered by hydrogen enriched gas.

14. Where do you see most innovation in terms of production technologies – primary, secondary or more downstream?

I see room for improvement everywhere. I also recognize that European and American technology companies will need to push hard on innovation to keep an edge against the Chinese and Indian competition.

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15. What exhibitions and conferences will TENOVA be attending in over the next six months?

We are still defining the calendar of physical events for the year because we are concerned about the evolution of the pandemic, and the safety and health of our people is always our top priority.

16. TENOVA is headquartered in Italy but what’s happening steel-wise in the country?

Like in the rest of Europe, investments to trigger the energy transition have increased over the past two years, thanks to public funding. We have some structural issues we need to solve in order to make this transition come true; one above all is the problem with hydrogen infrastructures to make this energy source available where needed. We have signed an agreement with Snam, Europe’s largest energy infrastructure operator, to conduct joint strategic studies and market analysis to implement specific infrastructure and metals production systems by using green hydrogen in Italy and abroad. Tenova’s combustion systems are a key part of the agreement with Snam.

17. If you possessed a superpower, how would you use it to improve the global steel industry?

I would love to see more market recognition for the conditions under which steel is fabricated. The path to a cleaner, safer and more inclusive world is based on our readiness to sacrifice for it. Our consumer choices can allow steel buyers to pay a premium for steel produced under sustainable conditions (environmentally and socially) and push the whole industry in the right direction. �

Digital Edition - June 2022

E N G A G E

A C C E L E R A T E

A C H I E V E

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