Primetals Technologies received an order from German steelmaker Salzgitter for an electric-arc furnace (EAF) with a tapping weight of 220 tons. The EAF, which will have an annual capacity of 1.9 million tons of steel, will be installed at the company’s steel plant in Salzgitter. Start-up is scheduled for the end of 2025. The EAF will include dust removal systems, a heat recovery system, a water management system, electrical compensation for grid stabilization and material handling for alloying materials and additives. It will also include Level 1 and 2 automation. The heat recovery system will convert much of the waste heat into steam, which is then fed back and used in other production units, and a condition-monitoring system will identify potential incidents before they occur.

The Salzgitter Low CO₂ Steelmaking (SALCOS) project aims to convert the existing integrated steel plant to green steel production in three stages by 2033. As part of the transformation, two direct reduction plants and three electric furnaces will be built, which will then successively replace the existing blast furnaces and converters. This order with Primetals Technologies marks the first step in this process. The SALCOS project will replace a coking-coal-based steelmaking process with a new hydrogen-based route. This is expected to save around 95% of annual CO₂ emissions. Salzgitter has an annual capacity of 7 million tons of crude steel.