ArcelorMittal to start Belval’s new EAF hot commissioning
ArcelorMittal is shortly expected to begin hot commissioning of its new electric arc furnace at the Belval site in Luxembourg, a source close to the steelmaker tells Kallanish.
The commissioning marks the final phase of the firm’s SteelUp! project at Belval, with full ramp-up scheduled for early January. Since mid-October, the steelmaker has been demolishing the old EAF and finalising the construction of the new unit.
The brownfield SteelUp! project focuses on modernising Belval and relocating production of semi-finished products supplied to the Rodange sections mill. Belval is now equipped with a brand new EAF, vacuum degassing unit, and a revamped continuous casting line. The modernisation will enhance energy efficiency and increase steel production capacity by nearly 15%.
With the new EAF replacing the unit that has been in operation since 1997, ArcelorMittal Long Products Luxembourg will become self-sufficient in crude steel production. It will fully cover the requirements of finished products in the Grand Duchy once the new equipment reaches full production, the source confirms.
The project comprises a digitised “no man on the floor” EAF with increased safety, a 15% energy consumption reduction, and 15% heavy sections productivity hike. The new vacuum degassing system will reduce dissolved gas.
ArcelorMittal’s Belval revamp approaches completion
ArcelorMittal’s SteelUp! project at Belval in Luxembourg is advancing to phase two and approaching completion. The brownfield project involves the modernisation of the site by relocating the production of semi-finished products fed to the Rodange sections mill – to reduce emissions and increase productivity.
New workstation installations will be operational, followed by a commissioning phase by year-end, Kallanish notes.
The project comprises a digitised “no man on the floor” electric arc furnace with increased safety, a 15% energy consumption reduction, and 15% heavy sections productivity hike. A new vacuum degassing system will reduce dissolved gas. The works include a continuous casting transformation system for new high-carbon steel grades and heavier beam blanks.
The scrap baskets will be enlarged to fill the furnace in one operation, boosting steel melting capacity each cycle. The company has completed the strengthening of the continuous casting.
“This reinforcement will enable the facility to produce a wide range of profiles, from 320 kg/m to 915 kg/m – a capability that typically requires two separate continuous casting lines at other steel plants. Additionally, the automation phase is now beginning, with the arrival of new extractors scheduled for September 2025,” the firm says. The new vacuum degasser will be commissioned by mid-2025.
The project also involves a new 150m² platform with a 100-tonne hot briquetted iron supply system. The HBI, used to make Rodange’s semi-finished products, is stored and distributed in a silo near the scrap yard. “This allows the creation of new metallurgical grades previously only achievable with blast furnaces.”
The modernisation will help to reach a certified low carbon footprint for steel of below 300kg per tonne, cutting CO2 by 200,000 t/year. The Belval site will obtain the XCarb label for rails produced from mill A.
The new Belval EAF costs about €67 million ($72.4m), including €15m from state subsidies.
ArcelorMittal Luxembourg produced 1.9 million tonnes of crude steel in 2023 and employs 3,368 workers. The new Belval EAF will increase ArcelorMittal Luxembourg production to 2.5m t/y of steel.
ArcelorMittal is investing in decarbonisation, product quality and increasing capacity at its Luxembourg long products facilities in Differdange and Belval.
Natalia Capra France
