Biocoal to reduce steel industry's emissions of climate gases
The steel company SSAB, together with a consortium led by IVL Swedish Environmental Research Institute, is to explore the possibility of replacing fossil fuels with biocoal.
In Sweden, approximately SEK 3 million tons of fossil carbon is used every year, of which approximately 70 per cent is used in the production of iron and steel. SSAB is a global steel company with production facilities in Sweden, Finland and the United States. The company has set its sights on reducing greenhouse gas emissions and to achieve this end is investigating several different solutions, including replacing fossil fuels with renewable energy. The joint project will focus on replacing fossil coal and other fossil raw materials with biocoal. In addition to reducing greenhouse gas emissions biocoal is also expected to provide ecological and social added value. – The project is all about developing system solutions and putting together a functioning chain, from cultivation via end-use in a variety of industrial and energy facilities culminating in competitive industrial products and services that will benefit Swedish industry, says Jenny Gode, unit manager at IVL Swedish Environmental Research Institute. The project is funded by Vinnova and is a so-called stage 1 project under the auspices of the Challenge-driven innovation programme. It is co-ordinated by IVL Swedish Environmental Research Institute in cooperation with SSAB, the fuel company Scandinavian Bioheat, the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences and Carbon Wealth. For more information, please contact: Jenny Gode E-mail: jenny.gode@ivl.se Phone: +46 (0)8-598 563 18 Roman Hackl E-mail: roman.hackl@ivl.se Phone: +46 (0)8-598 56 485