Hatch to help Tata covert Dutch Ijmuiden steelworks to hydrogen power

India’s Tata Steel said Sept. 13 that management, engineering, and business practice consultancy Hatch will be part of the team to deliver hydrogen to make green steel at its IJmuiden Works located on the Dutch coast.

Hatch has been selected to develop basic engineering for the reducing electric furnace (REF) solution, which, when coupled with a direct iron reduction (DRI) plant, will enable the production of green steel using hydrogen.

The smelting complex will use Hatch technology which uses an electric arc furnace to continuously melt and decarburize DRI and other metallics to make steel.

The hydrogen route project is part of Tata Steel’s commitment to produce steel with zero carbon emissions by 2045.

To achieve that goal, Tata Steel will convert its steelmaking facilities from coal-based to hydrogen-based utilizing DRI technology, in which iron ore is directly reduced using natural gas with progressively increasing amounts of hydrogen, and subsequently melted and refined in large efficient rectangular electric smelting furnaces.

This DRI + electric furnace route allows the production of the same high-quality steel, according to Tata Steel.

“We want to be CO2 neutral before 2045 and … emit between 35% and 40% less CO2 before 2030. This will largely be done via the hydrogen route,” commented in a statement CEO of Tata Steel Nederland Hans van den Berg. “We are replacing the blast furnaces with modern technology that uses hydrogen or gas instead of coal.”

— Ekaterina Bouckley