Electric arc furnace usage in global steel production hits 28.6%

According to data from the World Steel Association analyzed by SteelRadar, electric arc furnace (EAF) accounted for 28.6% of global steel production.

Mexico led the way with the highest utilization rate of EAF, producing 16.2 million tons of steel with a 93.4% EAF usage rate. South America followed closely, with 93.2% EAF usage in 3.6 million tons of steel production. Iran produced 31 million tons of steel using EAF at a rate of 92.1%, while Italy reported 85.8% EAF usage in 21.1 million tons of steel production. Spain and Turkey also reported significant usage, with Spain producing 11.4 million tons of steel at a 71.9% EAF usage rate and Turkey producing 33.7 million tons of steel with 71.6% EAF usage.

China, the world's largest steel producer, reported a 9.9% EAF usage rate in its 1,019.1 million tons of steel production. In India, EAF accounted for 56.4% of the country's 140.8 million tons of steel production.

During the same period, Russia reported an EAF usage rate of 32% in its 76 million tons of steel production.

Middle East Leads in EAF Usage Rate

Regionally, the EAF usage rate in Asia was 18.8% across 1,395.2 million tons of steel production. In the European Union, 44.8% of the 126.3 million tons of steel produced were made using EAF.

In Russia and the CIS regions, EAF usage was at 32.4% for 90.5 million tons of steel production. Other European regions reported a 63.8% EAF usage rate for 43.6 million tons of steel production. In North America, 69.2% of the 110.2 million tons of steel produced used EAF, while in South America, the rate was 33.3% for 41.6 million tons of steel production. The African region reported an 86.9% EAF usage rate for 24.2 million tons of steel production, while the Middle East led all regions with a 95.5% EAF usage rate for 54.5 million tons of steel production.