ArcelorMittal Belgium has started construction of the new Baekeland high voltage substation, following a groundbreaking ceremony on 15 December attended by Flemish Minister of Ports Annick De Ridder, Port Alderman Sofie Bracke and the chief executives of Elia and North Sea Port, as well as ArcelorMittal Belgium Frederik Van De Velde.
ArcelorMittal Belgium will be the first industrial consumer to be connected directly to the 380 kV grid once the installation becomes operational in 2030. The steelmaker has signed a connection agreement with Elia as part of its plan to shift to an electric furnace route, which will require substantially more power. Its current 150 kV connection is not sufficient for the future equipment. The upgrade is described as a vital step in the company’s decarbonisation strategy.
“With this groundbreaking, we are taking an essential step towards electric steel production. As soon as the preconditions are met, we will be ready to produce low-carbon steel on an industrial scale,” Van De Velde says in a note obtained by Kallanish.
The substation will act as a key hub in the Belgian electricity network. It will receive power through cables and overhead lines, with transformers converting electricity to various voltage levels for major industrial users. The project is expected to significantly improve power availability for the port area and surrounding industry, while supporting the region’s broader energy transition.
ArcelorMittal Belgium currently uses two blast furnaces. The company plans to construct two EAFs, progressively phasing out the existing blast furnaces and targeting a 50% reduction in CO2 emissions. In Belgium, ArcelorMittal operates four steel hubs located in Ghent, Geel, Genk and Liège, generating approximately €5 billion ($5.84 billion) in revenue, employing around 5,000 people.
In Belgium, the steelmaker is implementing the CCU Steelenol project. The €215m facility operating in Ghent may be shut down, the steelmaker warned in June, as it is unprofitable due to current EU regulations.
Last month, Van De Velde said that limited green-steel demand is a threat to ArcelorMittal Belgium decarbonisation. Speaking at a hearing in the Belgian federal parliament, Van De Velde emphasised that current green steel volumes are insufficient to justify further large scale investments or to reach the 2m tonnes/year of green steel capacity required to build the company’s first electric arc furnace (see Kallanish passim).
