SSAB will replace its current blast furnace-based production system with a mini-mill equipped with electric arc furnaces and rolling complexes. The transformation will enable a reduction of 10 percent in Sweden’s total carbon dioxide emissions.
Jan 6, 2025
SSAB has received the necessary permit from the Land and Environmental Court in Umeå to build and operate a mini-mill in Luleå, Sweden, that will replace the current steel plant.
“This is a big day for SSAB and for the transformation to fossil-free steel production in Sweden. We safeguard jobs in Luleå, create a more flexible & cost-effective production, and strengthen our & our customers’ competitiveness with a wider offering of unique premium products,” said Johnny Sjöström, President and CEO at SSAB.
Once the mini-mill with electric arc furnaces, rolling complexes and further processing starts running at full capacity, the company will decommission its current blast furnace-based production system.
The investment will strengthen SSAB’s leading position in the green transition of the steel industry, with a focus on special and premium steels produced with close to zero fossil carbon emissions. It will lead to a better cost position, higher efficiency, shorter lead times and eliminated CO2 costs.
The mini-mill will run on fossil-free electricity and be supplied with a mix of fossil-free sponge iron produced with the HYBRIT technology (hydrogen reduction of iron ore) and recycled scrap as the raw material.
“This is an important step toward achieving both our own and Sweden’s climate goals, and the sooner the transformation happens, the better it will be for the climate and for the environment,” says Sara Arvidson, Director of Environmental Permits at SSAB’s Transformation Office.
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The transformation in Luleå will result in significant reductions of emissions to air and water, increase resource efficiency and remove about 2.8 million tonnes of annual carbon dioxide emissions. In total, SSAB’s transformation will enable a reduction of 10 percent in Sweden’s total carbon dioxide emissions, of which 7 percent comes from Luleå and 3 percent from the transformation in Oxelösund.
