ArcelorMittal Poland (AMP), a subsidiary of the global steel giant ArcelorMittal, has announced its readiness to significantly transition to the use of electric arc furnaces (EAF) at its plant in Dąbrowa Górnicza. However, guarantees of stable and competitive electricity prices are necessary to implement this plan. This was stated by the company’s CEO, Wojciech Kosuta.
This is reported by Business • Media
According to him, the first stage will involve the production of long products using EAF without compromising quality, and in the future, there are plans to adapt technologies for the production of flat rolled products. For this, AMP intends to leverage the experience and technologies of the ArcelorMittal Sestao plant in Spain, which has already fully transitioned to EAF.
Support for Stable Policy and Transition to Eco-Friendly Technologies
During his participation in the European Economic Congress in Katowice, Wojciech Kosuta emphasized the need for a stable industrial policy in the EU.
“We cannot change strategies every year. They need to be implemented consistently.”
Member of the European Parliament Jens Geier highlighted the importance of protecting industry to preserve jobs and ensure the energy transition, especially in light of competition from China and instability in the United States. He supported changes to state aid rules in the EU and stressed the importance of trade protection mechanisms, such as the CBAM system.
Kosuta added that in the future, AMP plans to gradually phase out the use of blast furnaces, initially transitioning to natural gas and later to hydrogen for the production of direct reduced iron (DRI). This approach will allow for flexible responses to fluctuations in electricity prices and maintain the competitiveness of European metallurgy.
As reported by GMK Center, ArcelorMittal Poland is also commissioning new hydrogen furnaces in the annealing shop at its plant in Krakow. The investment in this project amounted to 52 million zlotys ($12.5 million). The implementation of this technology has allowed the company to eliminate ammonia from the annealing process, reduce its duration, decrease natural gas and electricity consumption, and cut carbon emissions by 50%.