{"id":632641,"date":"2024-08-29T18:04:19","date_gmt":"2024-08-29T15:04:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/en.buradabiliyorum.com\/swedens-been-stealthily-using-hydrogen-to-forge-green-steel-now-its-ready-to-industrialise\/"},"modified":"2024-08-29T18:04:19","modified_gmt":"2024-08-29T15:04:19","slug":"swedens-been-stealthily-using-hydrogen-to-forge-green-steel-now-its-ready-to-industrialise","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/swedens-been-stealthily-using-hydrogen-to-forge-green-steel-now-its-ready-to-industrialise\/","title":{"rendered":"#Sweden\u2019s been stealthily using hydrogen to forge green steel. Now it\u2019s ready to industrialise"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"ez-toc-container\" class=\"ez-toc-v2_0_84 counter-hierarchy ez-toc-counter ez-toc-custom ez-toc-container-direction\">\n<p class=\"ez-toc-title\" style=\"cursor:inherit\">Table of Contents<\/p>\n<label for=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-item-6a2d3f93a9dbf\" class=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-label\"><span class=\"\"><span class=\"eztoc-hide\" style=\"display:none;\">Toggle<\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-icon-toggle-span\"><svg style=\"fill: #dd3333;color:#dd3333\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" class=\"list-377408\" width=\"20px\" height=\"20px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" fill=\"none\"><path d=\"M6 6H4v2h2V6zm14 0H8v2h12V6zM4 11h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2zM4 16h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2z\" fill=\"currentColor\"><\/path><\/svg><svg style=\"fill: #dd3333;color:#dd3333\" class=\"arrow-unsorted-368013\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" width=\"10px\" height=\"10px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" version=\"1.2\" baseProfile=\"tiny\"><path d=\"M18.2 9.3l-6.2-6.3-6.2 6.3c-.2.2-.3.4-.3.7s.1.5.3.7c.2.2.4.3.7.3h11c.3 0 .5-.1.7-.3.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7zM5.8 14.7l6.2 6.3 6.2-6.3c.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7c-.2-.2-.4-.3-.7-.3h-11c-.3 0-.5.1-.7.3-.2.2-.3.5-.3.7s.1.5.3.7z\"\/><\/svg><\/span><\/span><\/label><input type=\"checkbox\"  id=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-item-6a2d3f93a9dbf\" checked aria-label=\"Toggle\" \/><nav><ul class='ez-toc-list ez-toc-list-level-1 ' ><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-1\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/swedens-been-stealthily-using-hydrogen-to-forge-green-steel-now-its-ready-to-industrialise\/#How_do_you_make_steel_using_hydrogen\" >How do you make steel using hydrogen?\u00a0\u00a0<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-2\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/swedens-been-stealthily-using-hydrogen-to-forge-green-steel-now-its-ready-to-industrialise\/#Going_mainstream\" >Going mainstream<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-3\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/swedens-been-stealthily-using-hydrogen-to-forge-green-steel-now-its-ready-to-industrialise\/#Can_Europe_hold_on_to_its_green_steel_tech\" >Can Europe hold on to its green steel tech?<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/nav><\/div>\n<div id=\"article-main-content\">\n                            <span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Deep in Sweden\u2019s icy north sits a small factory where the country\u2019s largest industrial players have been steadily validating a new <a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/technology\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"4\" title=\"Technology\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">technology<\/a> that could clean up one of the dirtiest industries on Earth.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Energy giant Vattenfall, steel-maker SSAB, and mining firm LKAB<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> built the facility \u2014 located in the small town of Lule\u00e5 \u2014 in 2020, as part of the <\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">HYBRIT project. The initiative aims to prove that steel can be made on an industrial scale using hydrogen and clean electricity.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cUsing hydrogen to produce steel is still in its very early stages,\u201d an SSAB representative told TNW. \u201cIt represents only a tiny fraction of today\u2019s steel production.\u201d But that might be about to change.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"How_do_you_make_steel_using_hydrogen\"><\/span><b>How do you make steel using hydrogen?\u00a0\u00a0<\/b><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Steel is one of the world\u2019s <\/span><a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/materials.imdea.org\/what-is-the-most-used-material-in-the-world-and-the-least-researched\/#:~:text=Steel%20is%20the%20second%20most,of%20the%20steel%20consumed%20recycled.\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">most used<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> materials. And its production is responsible for 11% of global CO2 emissions. Most of these emissions are produced when heating and reducing iron \u2014 the core component of steel \u2014 in a blast furnace using coal and coke (a refined type of coal, not the soft drink).\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"inarticle-wrapper channel-cta\">\n<div class=\"ica-text\">\n<p class=\"ica-text__title\">TNW Conference 2025 &#8211; Back to NDSM on June 19-20, 2025 &#8211; Save the date!<\/p>\n<p>As we wr<a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/download-scripts-themes-apps\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"9\" title=\"Download Scripts &amp; Themes &amp; Apps\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">app<\/a>ed up our incredible 2024 edition, we&#8217;re pleased to announce our return to Amsterdam NDSM in 2025. Registration now!<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The HYBRIT technology, however, doesn\u2019t use a<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> blast furnace at all. It uses hydrogen instead of coke in a process called direct reduction. <\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">This reduces iron oxides to metallic iron without melting it.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The hydrogen reacts with the oxygen in iron ore, producing so-called \u201csponge iron.\u201d The only byproduct is water vapour.<\/span><\/p>\n<figure class=\"post-image post-mediaBleed aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-1409787 js-lazy\" alt=\"An image of a someone holding a piece of sponge iron wit the Hybrit fossil-free steel plant in the background.\" width=\"1500\" height=\"840\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn0.tnwcdn.com\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/1\/files\/2024\/08\/hybrit-green-steel-sponge-iron.jpg\"\/><figcaption>A piece of fossil-free sponge iron with the Hybrit pilot plant in the background. Credit: Hybrit<\/figcaption><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-1409787\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn0.tnwcdn.com\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/1\/files\/2024\/08\/hybrit-green-steel-sponge-iron.jpg\" alt=\"An image of a someone holding a piece of sponge iron wit the Hybrit fossil-free steel plant in the background.\" width=\"1500\" height=\"840\" srcset=\"\"\/><\/figure>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">At the plant in <\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Lule\u00e5<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, SSAB takes this sponge iron and then melts it into steel in an electric arc furnace powered by Vattenfall\u2019s wind farms. The result is good ol\u2019 fashioned steel \u2014 but without the emissions.<\/span><\/p>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Going_mainstream\"><\/span><b>Going mainstream<\/b><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">This week, Vattenfall, SSAB, and LKAB presented the results of their six-year trial to the Swedish Energy Agency. <\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The report shows that the iron produced using hydrogen isn\u2019t just carbon neutral, but is also stronger and more durable than iron produced with fossil fuels. The partners have applied for and received several patents based on the results.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">HYBRIT\u2019s pilot plant is the world\u2019s first to prove the \u201cfossil-free value chain\u201d for steel on a semi-industrial scale. The factory has already produced 5,000 tonnes of hydrogen-reduced iron. And companies like Volvo, Epiroc, and Peab have already put the green steel in their cars, machinery, and buildings.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The industrial giants will now start building a larger factory in G\u00e4llivare, three hours North of <\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Lule\u00e5, in the heart of Swedish Lapland.<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> The long-term plan is to build more hydrogen iron factories and completely decarbonise steel production in Sweden \u2014 slashing 10% of the countries emissions.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">However, significant hurdles lie ahead. Generating sufficient quantities of green hydrogen will require constant supplies of clean energy. Moreover, hydrogen is currently much more expensive than fossil fuels, and the <\/span><a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.hydrogeninsight.com\/production\/cost-of-green-hydrogen-unlikely-to-fall-dramatically-in-coming-years-admit-developers\/2-1-1523281?zephr_sso_ott=Uqyq3U\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">price isn\u2019t falling as fast<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> as anticipated.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Can_Europe_hold_on_to_its_green_steel_tech\"><\/span><b>Can Europe hold on to its green steel tech? <\/b><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Mining giant Archelor Mittal <\/span><a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.hydrogeninsight.com\/industrial\/green-hydrogen-is-too-expensive-to-use-in-our-eu-steel-mills-even-though-weve-secured-billions-in-subsidies\/2-1-1601199\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">said<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> in February that it cannot operate its European plants using green hydrogen because the resulting green steel would not compete on international markets. It\u2019s simply too expensive.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cDeveloping any completely new technology is costly,\u201d an LKAB spokesperson told TNW. \u201cWith support, it goes faster, but we are competing with initiatives that receive state backing at significantly higher levels.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">LKAB is no doubt referring to the fact that, oftentimes, climate tech funding flows more freely outside Europe, fuelled by massive public spending like Biden\u2019s $1 trillion Inflation Reduction Act.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In March, the US <\/span><a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/gmk.center\/en\/news\/us-has-allocated-6-billion-to-support-projects-to-reduce-industrial-emissions-2\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">pledged<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> up to $1bn for two green steel projec<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">ts. US steelmaker Cleveland-Cliffs will build one of the plants. The other will be constructed by none other than SSAB, using the hydrogen reduction technology developed under HYBRIT.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">European policymakers would do well to read the writing on the wall and boost funding for climate tech \u2014 or risk continuing the <\/span><a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/sifted.eu\/articles\/european-startups-moved-to-usa\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">trend<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> of forcing homegrown technology to mature on foreign shores.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">It\u2019s not all bad <a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/news\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"2\" title=\"News\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">news<\/a>, however.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">H2 Green Steel<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, one of Europe\u2019s best funded startups, has chosen a site in Boden, Sweden, for its first industrial plant. <\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The startup expects to roll out the first commercial batches of its steel by 2025 and aims to produce 5 million tonnes of green steel a year by 2030.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">H2 Green Steel has also<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> signed an agreement with<\/span> <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.globaldata.com\/company-profile\/iberdrola-sa?scalar=true&amp;pid=633950&amp;sid=19\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Iberdrola<\/span><\/a> <span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">to build a plant powered by solar power in Spain, while<\/span> <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/gravithy.eu\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">GravitHy<\/span><\/a> <span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">plans to open a hydrogen-based steel plant in France in 2027.<\/span>\n                        <\/div>\n<blockquote><p><strong><span style=\"color: #ff6600;\">If you liked the article, do not forget to share it with your friends. Follow us on\u00a0<span style=\"color: #ff0000;\"><a style=\"color: #ff0000;\" href=\"https:\/\/news.google.com\/publications\/CAAqBwgKMN63nwsw68G3Aw\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener noreferrer\">Google News<\/a><\/span>\u00a0too, click on the star and choose us from your favorites.<\/span><\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<blockquote>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong>If you want to read more like this article, you can visit our <span style=\"color: #ff9900;\"><a style=\"color: #ff9900;\" href=\"https:\/\/en.buradabiliyorum.com\/technology\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Technology category.<\/a><\/span><\/strong>\n<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><span style=\"color: black;\"><a style=\"color: #ff9900;\" href=\"https:\/\/thenextweb.com\/news\/sweden-hydrogen-green-steel-vattenfall-ssab-lkab-hybrit\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Source<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Deep in Sweden\u2019s icy north sits a small factory where the country\u2019s largest industrial players have been steadily validating a new technology that could clean up one of the dirtiest industries on Earth.\u00a0 Energy giant Vattenfall, steel-maker SSAB, and mining firm LKAB built the facility \u2014 located in the small town of Lule\u00e5 \u2014 in&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":632642,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/img-cdn.tnwcdn.com\/image\/tnw-blurple?filter_last=1&fit=1280%2C640&url=https%3A%2F%2Fcdn0.tnwcdn.com%2Fwp-content%2Fblogs.dir%2F1%2Ffiles%2F2024%2F08%2Fhybrit-green-steel-pilot-plant.jpg&signature=fd1d41412f14c3ed11bb653cc0d91e7d","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[18],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-632641","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-technology"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/632641","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=632641"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/632641\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/632642"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=632641"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=632641"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=632641"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}