green steel production

Fringe Friday: Sustainable Long Steel Production in Texas

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We’re celebrating getting to the “fringe” of the weekend with a Heat Treat Fringe Friday covering news about a Texas steelmaker making strides in sustainable metal heating with a new facility. An electric arc furnace and a technology platform are included in the company’s strategy to lower emissions and energy consumption and increase production.

While not exactly heat treat, “Fringe Friday” deals with interesting developments in one of our key markets: aerospace, automotive, medical, energy, or general manufacturing.

Vinton Steel LLC, the U.S. subsidiary of Kyoei Steel, is bolstering its steelmaking operations with a melt shop at its facility in El Paso, Texas, which includes an electric arc furnace (EAF) and an advanced technology platform designed to increase production capacity to 400,000 tons per year while significantly reducing emissions, energy consumption, and operational costs. This expansion is a major step in the company’s North American expansion.

Tenova, a developer and provider of sustainable solutions for the green transition of the metals industry, will supply the Green City Mill Flex platform, with construction expected to begin the summer of 2025 and plant startup scheduled for the first quarter of 2027.

“This project marks a significant milestone for Kyoei Steel Group’s expansion in North America,” said Masahiro Kitada, chairman of Vinton Steel LLC. “By investing in state-of-the-art green steelmaking technologies, we are not only strengthening our presence in the U.S. market but also contributing to the economic development of the local community and the entire West Texas region. We are proud to bring advanced and sustainable steel production to El Paso at the Border area, creating new opportunities for growth. We are happy to embrace our largest investment outside Japan with a long-lasting partner like Tenova.”

Tenova’s Green City Mill Flex is redefining the future of long steel production by setting new benchmarks in efficiency, product flexibility, and environmental responsibility. Engineered to manufacture a wide range of long steel grades with the lowest carbon footprint on the market, this innovative platform integrates cutting-edge technologies, including the third generation Consteel® Electric Arc Furnace technology. The plant will also feature continuous casting and rolling capabilities in collaboration with Pomini Long Rolling Mills. By leveraging the local steel scrap recycling supply chain, Green City Mill Flex strengthens the principles of circular economy and self-sufficiency, minimizing the environmental impact of steel production in urban settings.

“This project sets a new benchmark for regional steelmaking plants,” said Francesco Memoli, president and CEO of Tenova Inc. “The Green City Mill Flex platform represents the latest evolution of the mini-mill concept, adding unprecedented levels of flexibility, efficiency, and safety. It is a game-changer for long-steel producers looking to modernize and meet the demands of sustainable manufacturing.”

Under the contract, Tenova will supply a complete suite of next-generation technologies, including a 45-ton Consteel® EAF with continuous scrap preheating, an in-line ladle metallurgy furnace for precise steel refining, a multi-strand continuous casting machine, and a fully automated material handling system. The project will also include an advanced fume treatment plant with a quenching tower and pulse-jet baghouse, a zero-water-consumption water treatment plant, and a new electrical distribution system, all designed to maximize efficiency and sustainability.

Main image: On February 3, 2025, Executives from Vinton Steel and Tenova gathering at Kyoei Steel’s headquarters in Osaka, Japan, on February 3, 2025, to celebrate the signing of the contract. (Francesco Memoli, President & CEO of Tenova Inc., on the far left; Masahiro Kitada, Chairman of Vinton Steel LLC, on the far right)

The press release is available in its original form here.

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Green American Steel: The Envy of the World with CEO Lourenco Goncalves

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op-edHow can steel production be "green"? Where does the United States stand in steel production when compared to the rest of the world?

Lourenco Goncalves, chairman, president, and CEO of Cleveland-Cliffs, Inc. answers these questions and more in this article, originally published in Heat Treat Today's August 2021 Automotive print edition.

Lourenco Goncalves
Chairman, President, CEO
Cleveland-Cliffs, Inc.

The United States is the benchmark of the world in all things steel. Amongst all major steelmaking nations, we have by far the greenest emissions profile. On average, each ton of steel produced in the United States generates 1.0 tons of CO2 emissions, compared to a ton of steel produced by China which generates 2.5 tons of CO2 emissions. The U.S. generates only 2% of all the greenhouse gas emissions from global steel production, while China contributes 64%.

The attributes that make our industry so green are the use of scrap, natural gas as both a reductant and energy source, and green iron ore pellets in blast furnaces. Because scrap cannot be used in a closed loop, natural gas and pellets allow for a healthy participation of low-carbon intensity virgin iron and steel units in a well-balanced ecosystem.

Steel’s emissions profile also makes it the lowest-carbon option compared to other materials perceived to be green, such as aluminum and carbon fiber. Adjusting for part weight, production of the equivalent volume of these competing materials generates 5 to 10 times more CO2 emissions than steel made in the United States.

This emissions profile is just one of many attributes that will support steel’s continued position as the material of choice in automotive light vehicle bodies. On top of being the greenest material and having a 100-year incumbency advantage, steel is more affordable than aluminum and is easier to weld, form, and repair or replace. Our continued innovation in advanced high strength steels (AHSS) has allowed us to produce thinner, lighter-weight, yet stronger materials, and closed the gap on the perceived density advantages that the aluminum industry has touted.

Even though we boast a low emissions profile, our work is not done. At Cleveland-Cliffs, we have made public our target to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 25% by 2030. In our global discussion about decarbonization, the use of hydrogen (H2) as an iron-reducing agent has emerged as playing a key role in a carbon neutral future. While clean and leaving only steam (H2O) as its byproduct, large scale H2 use in steelmaking is an unproven technology that comes with enormous practical challenges, including safety and prohibitive costs. Knowing what we know today, we are probably decades away from H2 becoming part of any affordable and easily available technology.

At Cliffs, we don’t want to rely on breakthrough technologies, but rather deal with practical decarbonization options. Our efforts involve the use of the hydrogen contained in natural gas, which is actually a mix of 95% CH4 and 4% C2H6. Natural gas is used as the reducing agent at our new, state-of-the-art DRI facility in Toledo, OH, as well as a meaningful supplemental reductant in all eight of our blast furnaces. The abundance of cheap natural gas in the United States will continue to provide us ample opportunity to decarbonize.

Steel is the inevitable material of choice in a modern, greener world. As the largest flat-rolled steel producer in North America, Cleveland-Cliffs will remain on the cutting edge in shaping the future and further cementing our industry as the envy of the world.

About the Author: Lourenco Goncalves is chairman, president, and CEO of Cleveland-Cliffs, Inc. 

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