Hitachi Energy to work with Swedish H2 Green Steel

Sustainable energy company Hitachi Energy is to collaborate with Swedish company H2 Green Steel on technology to be used in low carbon steel production and green hydrogen projects, the companies said July 20.

Hitachi Energi will make an undisclosed equity investment in H2GS, which is developing a low-carbon steel plant in Boden, northern Sweden, which includes a green hydrogen plant as an integrated part of the steel production facility with initial production volumes of 2.5 million mt/year from 2025, increasing to 5 million mt/year by 2030.

Hitachi will provide the products and services needed to construct, operate, maintain and improve the power infrastructure required for steel production and giga-scale electrolyzer plants, the companies said.

Under their deal, Hitachi will also offtake low-carbon steel from H2GS once it starts production.

Platts assessed domestic HRC prices in Northern Europe at Eur855/mt ex-works Ruhr July 19, down 11.2% since the start of 2022, according to S&P Global Commodity Insights data.

“Achieving carbon-neutrality globally requires efforts from all industries to speed up the energy transition through collaboration,” Hitachi Energy Head of Europe, Middle East and Africa Johan Soderstrom said.

“We are supporting H2 Green Steel’s electrification project and at the same, we are able to secure green steel for our products which is in line with our purpose of advancing a sustainable energy future for all,” he said.

In July, H2GS received environmental approval for the planned low-carbon steel plant in Boden, northern Sweden and in June it signed a 14-TWh power purchase agreement with Norway’s Statkraft for the plant.

— Annalisa Villa