Our steel has long been an essential part of the energy and mobility transition
We have been traveling down this path for quite a while now. We have already invested over EUR 700 million in the last few years in environmental protection and energy efficiency. For years now, an average of ten percent of our capital expenditures has gone to environmental protection measures. Our steel has long been an essential part of the energy and mobility transition and can be found in offshore wind turbines, solar farms and pumped storage plants, railroad tracks, and electric cars. More than 80 wind farms in Europe, Asia and America are built on steel foundations from Dillinger. Saarstahl’s thermomechanically rolled spring steel cuts weight in vehicle construction by up to 20 percent, which means lower consumption and emissions. in 2020 we became the first in Germany to use hydrogen on an industrial scale in steel production. Now we want to take the next big step toward a more sustainable world.
We are becoming carbon-neutral
Our goal: Climate-neutrality by 2045. To achieve this, we are focusing on the use of hydrogen, on electric steel production and on recycling steel scrap. Construction of a direct reduced iron (DRI) plant and two electric arc furnaces (EAF) will begin in Dillingen and Völklingen in 2023, and production of 3.5 million tons of “green” steel per year is to start in 2027/2028. Our aim is to cut carbon emissions by 55 percent by 2030 – 4.9 million metric tons per year. We are converting 70 percent of our production directly to climate-friendly methods in the first phase – subject to the approval of public funds. In a second phase, a third EAF will be completed by 2045, enabling us to produce a total of 4.9 million tons of climate-neutral crude steel per year. We plan to invest around EUR 3.5 billion in this, but we need support in the form of public funding.
Pure Steel+:
Pure quality, pure innovation
Our steel has stood for centuries for high quality and will continue to do so with the new hydrogen-based manufacturing process. We are ensuring this through intensive research, the best equipment, and the know-how of our specialists. Pure quality, but carbon-neutral – that’s what Pure Steel+- stands for.
Green steel needs support
As one of Germany’s biggest steel manufacturers and the largest employer in Saarland, we are committed to our locations and accept our responsibility for future generations. Our investments are designed to protect the climate, environment, locations and jobs, and to boost purchasing power, value creation and investment in the region. Ensuring that we succeed on this path will require the support of state, federal and EU policymakers. Climate policy targets can only be achieved with the German steel industry and its products. For example, if the mechanical engineering sector replaced its German steel orders with imports from China, carbon emissions in the relevant value chain would increase by 13 million metric tons, as shown in the “IW Consult” study commissioned by the German Steel Industry Federation in 2022.