SMS group and Saarstahl, a part of SHS - Stahl-Holding-Saar partner to accelerate carbon-neutrality goals with advanced super-scale electric steelmaking plant
Summary
- The new EAF will significantly contribute to Stahl-Holding Saar (SHS) carbon neutrality plan by 2045 under the Power4Steel initiative
- Cutting-edge automation and will ensure enhanced operational efficiency and safety
- With 300 MVA of transformer capacity is one of the strongest EAF worldwide
SMS group was awarded a contract to supply one of the world’s strongest Alternate Current-Electric Arc Furnaces (AC-EAF) and its auxiliaries to Saarstahl in Völklingen, Germany. This will contribute to SHS’ goal to achieve carbon neutrality by 2045.
Jochen Burg, CEO SMS group: “We are proud to play a key role in Europe's green steel transformation with this major project for Saarstahl and SHS - Stahl-Holding Saar. The project highlights the long-standing partnership between SHS and SMS group. With an installed power of 300 MVA the new EAF is the biggest ever built by SMS group and will set a new milestone in a carbon-neutral future for the steel industry in Europe.”
The new 185-tons EAF will be built within an already defined brownfield area. With a transformer capacity of 300 MVA, it will be one of the strongest EAF in the world. Additionally, it will process a flexible mix of up to 100 percent scrap or 80 percent Cold Direct Reduced Iron (CDRI)/ Hot Briquetted Iron (HBI) and 20 percent scrap.
Featuring 9.3-meter shell-diameter - the largest EAF ever built by SMS group - it will have an annual capacity of 1.9 million tons of liquid steel. This investment aligns with SHS's strategic plan to utilize a mix of 70-85 percent natural gas and 30-15 percent hydrogen as an energy source by 2030, significantly reducing carbon emissions.
With phase I starting in October 2024 and the first heat expected in September 2028, the plant will produce various steel grades, including bearing steel, free-cutting steel, and spring steel.
The EAF will be equipped with Condoor®, SMS’ enhanced slag door, ensuring significant advantages in terms of safety, productivity, energy savings and environmental impact. Condoor® enables automatic operation, reduces power-off time, ensures a clean slag door sill, saves energy and lowers NOx emissions with a sealed shell. Additionally, it optimizes slag residence time, improving flux and raw material use while reducing electrode, carbon and lime consumption, thus lowering CO2 footprint.
Part of the scope is also a material handling system with bins designed for specific production grades, a liquid steel handling, refractory repair area, a water treatment plant, compressed air piping, two fume treatment plants, energy recovery and electric/automation systems, noise insulation, hybrid technology cars for scrap bucket movements, auxiliary cranes as well as bay and field piping.
The EAF will feature SMS group’s advanced X-Pact® automation, including X-Pact® Sense for leakage detection and X-Pact® Autotap for safe and automated tapping. Genius CM® will be implemented for predictive maintenance, enhancing operational efficiency and safety. Additional innovations include SafEBT-clean for automatic cleaning of the Eccentric Bottom Tapping (EBT) channel to ensure the highest rate of spontaneous EBT opening, SafEBT-fill for automatic sand filling, temperature taking and exchange of probes.
SMS group is renowned worldwide for its future-oriented technologies and outstanding service for the metals industry. The company applies its 150 years of experience and its digital know-how to provide the industry continuously with innovative products and processes – even beyond its core business – and generates worldwide sales of around 3.1 billion euros. SMS is the right partner for challenging projects, and supports its customers throughout the lifecycle of their plants, enabling profitable and resource-efficient value creation chains. Paving the way for a carbon-neutral and sustainable metals industry is the company’s stated goal. As a global player with German roots, SMS takes responsibility for its more than 14,000 employees.