As part of the project, a pilot plant that began operations in August 2020 in Luleå is testing direct reduction technology as an alternative to the conventional blast furnace process. Instead of coking coal, the process uses fossil free hydrogen produced from renewable electricity and water. During iron ore reduction, water is generated instead of carbon dioxide, and this water is then reused for hydrogen production, creating a circular manufacturing process.
Since 2020, the HYBRIT pilot plant has produced more than 5000 tons of hydrogen reduced sponge iron, demonstrating the technology's feasibility at a semi industrial scale. Based on the project's results, several patents have been secured, and the final research report was completed in August 2024.
One of the project's most important milestones was achieved in July 2021, when SSAB delivered the first steel produced using 100% fossil free hydrogen through HYBRIT technology from its Oxelösund plant to customers. This achievement marked a major step toward the commercialization of fossil free steel, and HYBRIT is expected to play a key role in expanding low carbon steel production in the years ahead.
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