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12.07.2022 | Sustainability, Advanced Manufacturing, Headquarters | Reading-time: 2 min

Steeltec switches to hydropower in steel production

Lucerne/Emmenbrücke - Steeltec in the canton of Lucerne will in future rely exclusively on electricity provided by Swiss hydropower to produce its special steels. For this further step in improving sustainability, a strategic partnership was concluded with Axpo Holding AG.

Steeltec, which is part of the Swiss Steel Group, has fully switched to green electricity in the production of its special steels, as the company announced in a press release. By using electricity generated at hydropower stations belonging to Axpo Holding AG’s fleet of Swiss power plants, the steel mill located in Emmenbrücke will further reduce its already very low emission values.

The Swiss Steel Group writes it has decided to exclusively use electric arc furnace technology in its steel mills, which works with steel scrap and has electricity as its main source of energy for an energy-intensive melting process. This emits much less CO2 than the primary route using the blast furnace and mined iron ore.

This use of scrap in conjunction with “decarbonized energy and a functioning cyclic economy” mean the emissions of Steeltec’s steel plants are around 78 percent below the industry average. The ecological footprint of the Emmenbrücke plant is the lowest within Swiss Steel Group. In switching to green electricity, the upstream footprint is noticeably reduced further and enables the production of rolled and bright steel material with “an outstanding ecological value proposition”.

Under the terms of the contract, Axpo will supply the steel mill in Emmenbrücke with electricity certifiably generated at Axpo’s hydropower stations until 2024.

Steeltec AG

 

 

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