By Gus Trompiz PARIS, Feb 10 (Reuters) - ArcelorMittal has decided to build a lower-emission electric furnace at its Dunkirk steel plant in France in a 1.3 billion euro ($1.55 billion) investment
ArcelorMittal to Invest in Lower-Emission Electric Furnace in Dunkirk
ArcelorMittal's Electric Furnace Project
By Gus Trompiz
Investment Details
PARIS, Feb 10 (Reuters) - ArcelorMittal has decided to build a lower-emission electric furnace at its Dunkirk steel plant in France in a 1.3 billion euro ($1.55 billion) investment after the EU took steps to protect the ailing sector, the group said on Tuesday.
Impact on Emissions
ArcelorMittal and other steelmakers in Europe have held back on investments in low-carbon production, saying such projects have been unviable in the face of massive imports and U.S. tariffs on EU exports.
Political Reactions
ArcelorMittal, however, said the European Union's plans to slash steel import quotas, along with the introduction in January of a carbon border tax scheme for imported industrial goods, had changed the outlook.
"We have much more confidence in the European Commission," Alain Le Grix de la Salle, president of ArcelorMittal France, said.
A new long-term electricity contract with French utility EDF from January 1 had also enabled the project to go ahead, providing Dunkirk with competitive, low-carbon power, he told reporters.
The planned furnace will replace one of the site's blast furnaces and have a capacity to produce 2 million metric tons of steel annually. Its emissions per ton of steel will be three times lower than at Dunkirk's blast furnaces, according to ArcelorMittal.
The facility will be 50% financed by ArcelorMittal and 50% funded through a French energy-efficiency scheme. It is due to launch in 2029, the company said.
French President Emmanuel Macron will visit the Dunkirk steel plant on Tuesday to hail the announcement, in contrast to criticism of ArcelorMittal by opposition parties that have denounced job cuts and called for its French plants to be nationalised.
The project was scaled back from an earlier 1.8 billion euro version entailing two electric furnaces and partly powered by hydrogen.
ArcelorMittal plans more electric furnace projects in France and across Europe in stages given the scale of investments and depending on market demand, Le Grix de la Salle said.
The Dunkirk plant's overall capacity will not change with the new furnace as it is a replacement, he said, adding that staff levels should also remain stable in the coming years.
($1 = 0.8399 euros)
(Reporting by Gus Trompiz; Editing by Susan Fenton)
