Page 31 - Best of STIL 2018 English

climate-neutral manner, the electricity required for the process has to be sourced from wind or solar power plants. The steam, on the other hand, is produced by the waste heat from steel production. A pilot facility operation in Salzgitter has been operational since October 2017.
Models demonstrate that SALCOS® offers major saving potential: By 2050, CO2 emissions could be reduced even more substantially than stipulated
by EU climate goals. If the iron and steel works were to be gradually extended to include direct reduction facilities, electrolyzers and electric arc furnaces operated by electricity from renewable resources, and the steel volume produced by the blast furnace and converter method were incre- mentally reduced, CO2 emissions could be cut by 10 to 50 % depending on the stage of transition. By transitioning the entire steel production process
to the new technology, a reduction of between 85 % and 95 % would even be possible, depending on the amount of hydrogen used.
In order to decarbonize the steel industry to such an extent, cost effectiveness would have to be ensured, as would a safe conversion
to the new steel-making process
without compromising on product
quality or system availability. The
challenges facing planners are
considerable, as direct reduction
systems and electric arc furnaces have never been installed into an existing integrated iron and steel works during continuous operations anywhere worldwide.
After the current planning phase, the first realization phase could follow from around 2025, which would already see CO2 emissions curbed by up to 26%. Full implementation could, in turn, be realized in two steps by 2050. Ultimately, it would be possible to reduce current CO2 emissions by up to 95%.
All this would be technically feasible. Decisive political and economic framework conditions, however, are currently still lacking. At present, the government charges on electric energy, for instance, do not allow the new system configura- tion to be sustainably operated in a cost-efficient manner. We are applying for public funding in order to enable investments on the required scale.
Despite all these challenges, Salzgitter AG continues to pursue and support the SALCOS® and GrInHy projects as part of a forward-looking, responsible business and managememnt approach.
The Group is also dialoging with key political and societal stakeholders on national and
European levels regarding these issues. The key to realizing SALCOS® and, in turn, decarbonizing steel production is largely in
the hands of the responsible politicians.
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