Hycamite joins 17 million euro FutSteel project to decarbonize steel with hydrogen and electric arc furnaces

Hycamite has joined the 17 million euro FutSteel research initiative led by the University of Oulu and SSAB. The project aims to redesign steel production by combining electric arc furnaces with hydrogen-based processes and recycled inputs. Steel accounts for about 7% of global emissions, so this kind of integrated approach matters for industrial decarbonization. Hycamite brings methane pyrolysis technology that splits natural gas into hydrogen and solid carbon without direct CO2 emissions. The company says its process uses roughly one-eighth the energy of electrolysis and can capture waste heat from the steel plant. The solid carbon produced can be used for slag foaming in electric arc furnaces or as battery-grade graphite. The three year FutSteel project starts in June 2026 and includes partners like SSAB, the University of Oulu, and several other industrial and research groups.