Steel Mills
ArcelorMittal Awarded $500 Million Subsidy for New Dofasco EAF, DRI Projects
Written by David Schollaert
February 17, 2022
The Ontario government will contribute $500 million ($393 million U.S.) towards ArcelorMittal Dofasco’s $1.8 billion clean tech project to decrease its carbon intensity in steelmaking.
The Hamilton-based steelmaker – a subsidiary of multinational ArcelorMittal SA – is working towards decreasing its greenhouse gas emissions by replacing its coal-fed coke ovens and blast furnaces with hydrogen-enabled electric arc furnace (EAF) and direct-reduced iron (DRI) technology.
The $1.8 billion ($1.42 billion U.S.) project and shift toward more EAF steelmaking – which the company said hinged on support from the Canadian government – will aid the steelmaker in its efforts to lower Dofasco’s CO2 emissions by approximately 60%, or 3.3 million tons per year, within the next seven years.
“Not only is this investment great news for the people of Hamilton, this is great news for people across the province as we take another step towards making Ontario a global innovation hub for building the car of the future,” said Ontario Premier Doug Ford. “By investing in innovative technologies, we’re strengthening our economy and protecting good local jobs for Ontario workers.”
The latest pledge by the provincial government is in addition to the $C400 million ($314.8 million U.S.) federal subsidy granted to the steelmaker last July. In total, ArcelorMittal’s Dofasco operation has roughly half of the funds needed to finance its furnace and steelmaking conversion through federal and provincial subsidies
“Reducing ArcelorMittal’s CO2 emissions intensity worldwide by 25% by 2030 is an ambitious target for a steel and mining company, but we believe it is achievable and that it is our responsibility to invent or innovate the processes and technologies that will enable us to reach that goal,” said John Brett, ArcelorMittal North America’s CEO.
The DRI unit is expected to have capacity of 2.2 million tons per year and the new EAF annual capacity of 2.65 million tons. The project will also include modifications to Dofasco’s existing EAF and continuous casters, according to the steelmaker.
Steelmakers in the U.S. have cried foul over the Canadian government’s subsidies, arguing that they amount to unfair trade.
By David Schollaert, David@SteelMarketUpdate.com
David Schollaert
Read more from David SchollaertLatest in Steel Mills
Despite trade chaos, Barry Schneider upbeat on SDI, steel
With 30 years of experience at Steel Dynamics, Barry Schneider reflects on the company and the state of the steel industry.
Algoma Steel seeks CAD$500M in operational support
Algoma Steel applied to Canada’s federal Large Enterprise Tariff Loan (LETL) program for $500 million to support its long-term operations.
SDI concerned with potential Brazil pig iron tariffs
Steel Dynamics Inc. (SDI) executives called a 50% tariff on Brazilian pig iron “concerning,” but think tariffs will be a “mainstay” of trade agreements going forward.
SDI earnings slip in Q2 as trade volatility hits customer orders
SDI profits slipped in second quarter amid trade policy volatility.
Cliffs puts ‘for sale’ signs up after another big quarterly loss
Cleveland-Cliffs lost more than $400 million for the third consecutive quarter but predicted results would improve in the second half of the year. And shares of the Cleveland-based steelmaker surged after company executives said during its Q2 earnings call on Monday that they could make billions by courting foreign investors or selling assets.