ArcelorMittal Europe unveils 2050 net-zero roadmap

Steel manufacturer ArcelorMittal Europe said it is investing in two routes to lower emissions by 30% by 2030 and become carbon neutral by 2050.

The company, part of Indian multinational ArcelorMittal SA (AMS:MT), will rely on smart carbon and direct reduction of iron (DRI) technologies to reach carbon neutrality in steel making, according to an official statement. It released a climate action report detailing the transition.

The smart carbon route leverages all clean energies -- circular carbon, clean power and carbon capture and storage (CCS) -- within the high temperature-controlled reduction environment of ironmaking, ArcelorMittal explains.

In its first phase, the smart carbon route will primarily use circular carbon.

The DRI route requires switching from using predominantly natural gas to hydrogen as the key reducing agent in the ironmaking process. As hydrogen becomes green, the process can come close to reaching carbon neutrality.

The difference between the two routes is that smart carbon can deliver carbon-neutral steel well before 2050, ArcelorMittal said.

By 2030, the company will work to combine smart carbon technologies with increased scrap usage in the primary steel production process. Beyond this period, it will need large-scale, affordable renewable energy for hydrogen-based steelmaking.

ArcelorMittal identified five market conditions that European steelmakers will need to reduce emissions while remaining competitive, which should be backed by the right policy framework within the EU given the high cost of the transition to new technologies.

The steelmaker estimates it will need between EUR 15 billion (USD 16.85bn) and EUR 25 billion to fully implement smart carbon. The DRI-based route will require EUR 30 billion to EUR 40 billion in investments, ArcelorMittal Europe said.

(EUR 1.0 = USD 1.123)

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