SSAB Americas says it will produce steel at its Iowa mill without using fossil fuels beginning in 2026, making it the first North American supplier to reach that goal.
Key to the effort is new technology that produces steel using hydrogen and renewable energy that's generated from wind farms in Iowa.
SSAB says its mill at Montpelier, about 14 miles northeast of Muscatine, is on track to be powered completely by renewable energy by 2022. It is partnering with MidAmerican Energy, which plans to produce green energy that's equal to 100% of its customers' power needs on an annual basis.
SSAB plants in Iowa and Alabama also will tap iron, a major ingredient in steel, that is produced in Sweden with a process using hydrogen and electric arc furnaces.
► MORE: Iowa's betting big on wind energy, but it's creating a problem: What happens to the blades once they're no longer useful?
MidAmerican Energy wind turbine farm near Macksburg, Iowa, Friday, July 27, 2018. (Photo: Rodney White/The Register)
The Swedish-American company says the process, using technology SSAB developed with other partners in Sweden, produces water as a byproduct rather than carbon dioxide, a greenhouse gas.
That will help the environment, SSAB says, since traditional steel production is the source of 7% of the carbon dioxide emissions globally.
Some Iowa environmental groups question whether MidAmerican Energy can meet its 100% renewable energy goal, since the utility has resisted retiring the coal-fired plants it relies on when wind, solar and other renewable energy isn't available.
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MidAmerican owns and operates five coal plants, placing it in the top 20 among utilities using coal for power generation in the U.S., the Iowa Environmental Council and Environmental Law & Policy Center have said.
MidAmerican Energy said the Iowa Utilities Board, the state’s regulatory agency, verifies the percentage of renewable energy generated annually.
SSAB said the steel it produces is used to build needed energy infrastructure such as wind towers, as well as heavy construction equipment.
https://www.press-citizen.com/story...-make-fossil-free-steel-iowa-2026/2685077001/
Key to the effort is new technology that produces steel using hydrogen and renewable energy that's generated from wind farms in Iowa.
SSAB says its mill at Montpelier, about 14 miles northeast of Muscatine, is on track to be powered completely by renewable energy by 2022. It is partnering with MidAmerican Energy, which plans to produce green energy that's equal to 100% of its customers' power needs on an annual basis.
SSAB plants in Iowa and Alabama also will tap iron, a major ingredient in steel, that is produced in Sweden with a process using hydrogen and electric arc furnaces.
► MORE: Iowa's betting big on wind energy, but it's creating a problem: What happens to the blades once they're no longer useful?
MidAmerican Energy wind turbine farm near Macksburg, Iowa, Friday, July 27, 2018. (Photo: Rodney White/The Register)
The Swedish-American company says the process, using technology SSAB developed with other partners in Sweden, produces water as a byproduct rather than carbon dioxide, a greenhouse gas.
That will help the environment, SSAB says, since traditional steel production is the source of 7% of the carbon dioxide emissions globally.
Some Iowa environmental groups question whether MidAmerican Energy can meet its 100% renewable energy goal, since the utility has resisted retiring the coal-fired plants it relies on when wind, solar and other renewable energy isn't available.
ADVERTISING
MidAmerican owns and operates five coal plants, placing it in the top 20 among utilities using coal for power generation in the U.S., the Iowa Environmental Council and Environmental Law & Policy Center have said.
MidAmerican Energy said the Iowa Utilities Board, the state’s regulatory agency, verifies the percentage of renewable energy generated annually.
SSAB said the steel it produces is used to build needed energy infrastructure such as wind towers, as well as heavy construction equipment.
https://www.press-citizen.com/story...-make-fossil-free-steel-iowa-2026/2685077001/
