Vestas and Arcelor want to produce recycled steel manufactured using wind power.
The Danish wind turbine manufacturer Vestas and the Luxembourg-based steel group ArcelorMittal are partnering to bring climate-friendly steel for wind energy onto the market. The product is to be made entirely from steel scrap, where the circle closes – it is melted in an Arcelor plant in Belgium that runs on 100 percent wind energy. Production is therefore considered to be low-emission. If installed in an offshore wind turbine, emissions would be reduced by around 25 percent compared to conventional steel, according to Vestas. For an onshore tower, it would be at least 52 percent.
The low-emission steel will first be used in the Baltic Power Offshore Wind Project off the coast of Poland, where construction is scheduled to begin in 2025 and is expected to supply over 1.5 million households with clean electricity. The partnership shows that it is now possible to produce the infrastructure required for renewable energies in this country in a European supply chain, said Laurent Plasman, CMO of Industry at ArcelorMittal Europe – Flat Products.
Just over a year ago, European wind power and steel industry representatives called on politicians to work towards securing access to raw materials to make the energy transition a success (we reported). Steel is essential for wind turbines, and the steel sector, in turn, needs renewable energies to produce in a more climate-friendly way, according to the letter from the closely interlinked industries. Large-scale green steel projects have recently been launched by German companies Salzgitter AG, thyssenkrupp Steel Europe, and the Norwegian company Blastr, among others.
More on sustainability and green steel: Swedish car manufacturer Volvo also wants to use sustainable steel to produce electric trucks and use wind power in its value chain.
Featured image: Rawmaterials.net
