Plug Power’s green hydrogen plant to supply steelworks
US-based Plug Power says it plans to build three green hydrogen production plants in Finland, unlocking 2.2 gigawatts of electrolyser capacity in the country by 2030. One will feed a green steelmaking plant, Kallanish reports.
The plants will be built in the cities of Kokkola and Kristinestad on Finland’s west coast and in Porvoo in southeast Finland. Kokkola will produce 85 short tons/day of liquid green hydrogen and up to 700,000 t/y of green ammonia and Kristinestad will get a 1 gigawatt electrolyser plant to generate green hydrogen for green steel production. Porvoo will produce up to 100 t/d of green hydrogen for local mobility and export to Europe via a pipeline. Partners include Hy2Gen and GravitHy.
“We are proud to commit our know-how and turnkey hydrogen solutions towards helping Finland deliver on its vision to become a European leader of the green hydrogen economy,” says Plug Power chief executive Andy Marsh.
The three plants will produce up to 850 st/day of green hydrogen or 2.2 gigawatts of electrolyser capacity by 2030. A final investment decision is expected in 2025-2026. The companies are currently working with numerous large investors and financial institutions to secure optimal capital arrangements and industrial partners to negotiate offtake agreements.
The plants will use Plug Power’s PEM electrolyser and liquefaction technology to reduce reliance on fossil fuels and to help decarbonise Europe. The projects will rely on Finland’s nuclear, wind and hydro power.
Austria’s steel production falls in April
Austria’s steelmakers decreased crude steel production in April, according to worldsteel data.
Output amounted to 651,477 tonnes, down by 6.5% compared to the previous month and less by 0.8% on-year, Kallanish notes.
In January-April, the country produced 2.48 million tonnes of steel, down 6.3% on-year.
In 2022, Austria had reduced steel production by 4.7% on-year to 7.51mt.
Overall EU output in April fell by 11% on-month to 11mt. In January-April, European steelmakers produced 44.4mt, down 10.2% on-year.
This year, EU steelmakers have begun restarting capacities that were shut down in last year’s fourth quarter, as apparent demand for steel and product prices began to rise, while energy costs declined and stabilised. However, the market has turned down again in the second quarter. Prices are falling amid severely subdued buying activity and declining import values.
In May, Voestalpine Tubulars said it will acquire section tubes production facilities from Vallourec Germany. Voestalpine Tubulars is active in the production of seamless round tubes and, in future, will thus be able to produce square and rectangular hollow sections up to large formats and wall thicknesses seamlessly hot-rolled.
Earlier, voestalpine approved an investment of around €1.5 billion ($1.6 billion) for the construction of one electric arc furnace at each of its two sites in Austria – Linz and Donawitz. These will ultimately replace two blast furnaces by 2027.
Svetoslav Abrossimov Bulgaria
UK extends Ukraine HR flats tariff exemption
The UK government has decided to extend the suspension of trade remedy measures on hot rolled flat and coil steel imports from Ukraine, according to the UK Trade Remedies Authority (TRA).
The suspension of anti-dumping measures on certain Ukraine-origin hot-rolled flat products is now valid for a further 12 months until 30 May 2024, Kallanish notes.
The suspension has been in place since August 2022. The anti-dumping duty before suspension was GBP 50.631/tonne ($63) applied on Metinvest Group and other Ukrainian producers.
The TRA has also conducted a review of anti-dumping measures on imports of these steel products from several countries, including Russia, Ukraine, Brazil, and Iran. In its preliminary findings, the TRA suggested extending the measures on imports from China, Russia, Brazil, and Iran, but removing them for Ukraine (see Kallanish passim).
The TRA concluded that the dumping of steel products from Ukraine was unlikely to recur due to the country’s reduced production capacity and limited export capabilities resulting from the ongoing war with Russia. Additionally, the TRA considered Ukraine’s need to rebuild its steel production facilities and the domestic demand for steel to reconstruct the country’s infrastructure.
Ukraine’s production of crude steel in 2022 decreased by 70.7% compared to pre-war levels, with two major steel mills destroyed and two others operating at reduced capacity.
Damage to Ukraine’s energy infrastructure, caused by Russia’s invasion, has resulted in power cuts and further reduction in steel production.
In terms of export capacity, Ukraine faces challenges due to the blockade by Russia of its deepwater ports in the Black Sea. Rail freight is considered an alternative for exports, but there are issues with railway gauges in Ukraine. There are plans for an intermodal transport corridor, potentially facilitated by the Italian government, which could help unblock the export of goods, including steel, and improve Ukraine’s export potential.
At the same time, Ukraine’s export of HR flat steel to the UK has been traditionally minimal and has not significantly impacted the UK’s market in the past.
Namely, from 2018 to 2022, the UK’s HR flat steel imports from Ukraine ranged from 30 to 2,121 tonnes, representing less than 0.01% of the total imports from both the EU and non-EU countries. In 2020, it accounted for 0.16%, while in 2021, there were no HR flat steel imports from Ukraine.
Elina Virchenko UAE