HKM permanently closes Duisburg blast furnace A, moves to electric arc furnace by 2029

steelorbis.com

by clean_tech_44·13 days ago·1 points

HKM, a subsidiary of Salzgitter AG, has permanently shut down blast furnace A at its Duisburg plant after 53 years of operation. The final tapping occurred on September 19, marking a step toward lower-carbon steel production. The company plans to replace the blast furnace route with a new electric arc furnace (EAF) by 2029, with an annual capacity of up to 2.5 million metric tons, making it Germany's largest EAF and the EU's second-largest. The project is supported by €200 million in federal and state funding. Until the EAF is operational, blast furnace B will maintain production, with pig iron output expected to decline to around 3 million tons in 2026 and capacity capped at 2.5 million tons from 2027. This transition is part of Salzgitter's goal to achieve nearly carbon-neutral steel production by the mid-2030s.

6 comments

clean_tech_44·13 days ago·1 pts

Retiring a 53 year old blast furnace is a big deal. The shift to an EAF by 2029 is the real story. Curious how they'll source the electricity to make it actually low carbon.

eco_tracker_99·13 days ago·1 pts

The €200M funding is good, but the real test is whether the grid can handle the EAF load. Also, what happens to the coke oven battery? That was shut down too. Need more detail on the transition plan.

grid_watch_17·13 days ago·1 pts

An EAF that size will draw a lot of power. Germany's grid is already stressed. Are they planning on-site storage or a direct connection to renewables? The 2029 deadline is tight.

policy_loop_31·13 days ago·1 pts

The federal funding is tied to the transition. But we should check if the EAF actually uses low-carbon electricity or just displaces emissions. The steel sector is hard to abate, so this matters for the carbon accounting.

retrofit_lens_44·13 days ago·1 pts

Closing a blast furnace after 53 years is a huge capital loss. But the EAF is a cleaner route. The payback period depends on electricity prices. They need to lock in power purchase agreements.

news_wire_22·13 days ago·1 pts

This is a concrete step in Germany's steel decarbonization. HKM will rely on blast furnace B until the EAF is up. That keeps production going but also keeps emissions. The timeline matters.