United States Steel Corp. expanded its commitment to sustainability by setting a goal targeting net-zero carbon emissions by 2050. To achieve its net-zero goal for 2050, U.S. Steel expects to leverage its growing fleet of electric-arc furnaces (EAF) coupled with technologies such as: direct-reduced iron; carbon-free energy sources; and carbon capture, sequestration and utilization. Achievement of the goal also depends on public-private collaboration across industries and global stakeholders to develop supportive breakthroughs, including access to commercially available carbon-neutral electricity sources.

Tenova received an order from Italy’s NLMK Verona for the turnkey supply of a 70-ton vacuum oxygen decarburization (VOD) plant with level 1 and level 2 automation and a deslagging machine. The scope of the contract includes engineering, supply, erection of all equipment, supervision of erection, commissioning and training. The VOD plant will expand the company’s existing production route, which currently includes an electric-arc furnace (EAF), two ladle furnaces, a vacuum degassing system, a continuous casting plant and an ingot casting plant.

Stelco Holdings Inc. announced that its wholly owned subsidiary, Stelco Inc., successfully commissioned a new pig-iron caster at its Lake Erie Works facility. It has the capability of casting up to 1 million tons of pig iron per year. The addition of the pig-iron caster will allow the company to fully capitalize on increased capacity resulting from its recently completed blast-furnace upgrade project. With the expansion of EAF production in North America, the demand for iron units is placing increased pressure on the existing supply of scrap steel, making pig iron a highly valued commodity in the production of EAF steel.

Nucor Steel Florida safely started on schedule in December 2020 by melting, casting and rolling in endless mode from the first heat. Located in Frostproof, Fla., the minimill has a rated capacity of 380,000 shtpy and will produce rebar ranging from 0.37-1.4 inches (9.5-35.8 mm) in straight bars up to 60 feet and spooled coils up to 5 tons. Danieli’s MIDA casting and rolling technologies significantly reduce the overall CO₂ emissions due to the absence of a reheating furnace. Nucor Steel Florida will allow the company to satisfy the regional demand of steel rebar and recycle the scrap available in the area.

ArcelorMittal and Nippon Steel Corp. executed a definitive agreement to invest approximately $775 million to build an electric-arc furnace (EAF) at AM/NS Calvert, a joint venture between the companies located in Calvert, Ala. The EAF is scheduled to start operation in the first half of 2023. AM/NS Calvert currently produces steel-sheet products by processing semi-finished products (slabs) procured from domestic and overseas suppliers. The new EAF will enable the facility to manufacture the slabs necessary to produce its steel-sheet products. This, in turn, will enable AM/NS Calvert to shorten lead time in slab procurement, improve its productivity through utilization of self-manufactured high-temperature slabs and increase the domestic procurement ratio of slabs. The EAF will have a capacity of 1.5 million metric tons per year.

Salzgitter Flachstahl GmbH, the largest steel subsidiary in the Salzgitter Group, commissioned Tenova to build a demonstration plant for the production of direct reduced iron (DRI) using up to 100% hydrogen as a reducing agent. The plant is based on ENERGIRON technology and will be installed at the Salzgitter steel mill in Salzgitter, Germany. The plant will have a nominal production capacity of 100 kg/h and will be operated with hydrogen and natural gas. The DRI produced will be used in the blast-furnace process to save injected coal and in the electric-arc furnace (EAF) of the Peine plant.

Commercial Metals Company announced that its micro-mill in Mesa, Ariz., CMC Steel Arizona, has started receiving renewable energy from Salt River Project's (SRP) new Saint Solar electricity-generation plant. CMC Steel Arizona was one of the original customers to join the first phase of SRP's Sustainable Energy program, which was announced in 2018. The Saint Solar plant, located in Coolidge, Ariz., is a 100-megawatt utility-based solar array that will provide renewable energy to CMC Steel Arizona and others in the SRP community. Constructed in 2009, CMC Steel Arizona utilizes scrap-based electric-arc furnace (EAF) technology to produce steel.

United States Steel Corp. exercised its call option to acquire the remaining equity of Big River Steel for approximately $774 million. The transaction is expected to close in the first quarter of 2021. Big River Steel operates a LEED-certified Flex Mill in northeast Arkansas. The company’s advanced manufacturing technology and skilled operators combined with U.S. Steel’s product development capabilities and intellectual property have allowed Big River Steel to produce 11 advanced U.S. Steel grades.

Tenova was awarded a contract by Valbruna ASW Inc. for the supply of an electric-arc furnace (EAF). Valbruna ASW is a premier specialty steelmaker, and the EAF will be installed at its facility in Welland, Ontario (Canada). The EAF will guarantee an increase in the plant’s hourly melt-shop production rate and the effectiveness and reliability in the production of high-quality steel and stainless steel.

Tenova has been contracted by Guangdong Nanfang Donghai Iron & Steel Co. Ltd. to supply two electric-arc furnaces (EAFs) and Consteel Evolution plants equipped with Consteerrer technology for its melt shop in Guandong Province, China. Tenova’s EAF Consteel Evolution will allow the steelmaker to reduce pollution and CO₂ emissions while improving productivity. Consteerrer technology, which was jointly developed with ABB, is an electromagnetic stirring system that will provide more reliable and safer operations, higher steel quality and more precise logistics. It can be customized to match the needs of different EAF process steps.