€450M Green Steel Hydrogen Project Approved in Spain

The Spanish Government has approved €450 million for ArcelorMittal’s circular hydrogen project in Asturias. Hydrogen Industry Leaders explores how this will boost the decarbonisation of ancillary industries.

It will allow the company to produce ‘green steel’ by using hydrogen produced from renewable energies.

ArcelorMittal’s plan includes measures to improve its competitiveness through new investments, such as the new electric furnace at the Gijon plant, a direct iron ore reduction (DRI) plant with green hydrogen in the same facility and the possibility of a new electric furnace in Aviles.

In addition, the company is participating in the HyDeal project that will turn the Cantabrian Coast into a major green hydrogen hub.

Aviles and Gijon, ArcelorMittal Asturias’ two factories, are close to the ports of both locations, which ensures an efficient reception of raw materials and an optimal shipment of their products. It is the only integrated steel plant in Spain, producing steel from iron ore.

This follows an MoU with the Spanish Government that the company signed in July 2021. This will see a €1 billion investment in decarbonisation technologies at its Asturias plant in Gijon.

The investments are said to reduce carbon emissions at its Spanish operations by up to 4.8 million tonnes, which represents approximately 50 per cent of emissions by 2026.