Participants from SSAB and Danieli kick off the project at Danieli’s plant in Buttrio, Italy.

In April this year, SSAB’s Board of Directors took the decision to build a state-of-the-art fossil-free mini-mill in Luleå as the next step in SSAB’s transformation to fossil-free steel production. The transformation in Oxelösund Sweden is already ongoing.

Quality hot-rolled coils will be produced through electric steelmaking and direct casting-rolling

The new Luleå mill will have a capacity of 2.5 Mt/year  and consist of two electric arc furnaces, advanced secondary metallurgy, a direct strip rolling mill to produce SSAB’s specialty products, and a cold rolling complex to serve the mobility segment with a broader offering of premium products. The new mill will be supplied with a mix of fossil-free sponge iron from the Hybrit demonstration plant in Gällivare and recycled scrap.

In the chosen solution, Danieli will supply a melt shop consisting of two DigiMelters featuring a Q-One power feeder, continuous scrap charge and a Melt Model suite for dynamic control of the melting profile, plus two twin-ladle refining stations and two twin-tank vacuum degassers. Endless scrap charging improves furnace efficiency and reduces NOx emissions.

The selected configuration of QSP-DUE Danieli Universal Endless technology – which will allow SSAB to produce a wide range of hot-rolled strip in coil-to-coil and semi-endless modes, resulting in a product portfolio expansion – incorporates a fully electric tunnel furnace to ensure minimum carbon footprint.

This new generation of tunnel furnaces makes use of a combination of induction modules and electrical resistances. The provision of dry rolls in the tunnel furnace also delivers important electrical energy consumption savings, and excellent strip quality. Total quality management using DigiMet solutions and robotics will make the plant highly automated from scrap handling to the coil yard. The configuration will also include Danieli water- and fume-treatment plants, auxiliary plants, and cranes.

The startup of the new mill is planned for the end of 2028, with full operating capacity one year later. Environmental permits are expected at the end of 2024. The investment is an important step in SSAB’s strategy to establish a leading position in emission-free special and premium steels. When completed, SSAB will decommission the existing blast furnace-based production system in Luleå. This will reduce Sweden’s CO2 emissions by 7% in addition to the 3% from the Oxelösund mill conversion.

For further information, please contact:
Atte Kaksonen, Corporate Communications, SSAB, atte.kaksonen @ ssab.com, tel +358 50 3143 634