Blast furnace to be replaced

Will this construction site save Austria’s CO2 balance?

Here, the new electric arc furnace is being built at the Donawitz steelworks.(Bild: Juergen Fuchs)

Despite the economic crisis, Voestalpine is pressing ahead with its multi-billion green steel project. A milestone will be reached in the construction work in Leoben-Donawitz next week - the first blast furnace is due to go out in a few years' time. This will dramatically reduce CO2 emissions.

The site where industrial history will be written in three years' time looks like a construction site hidden object today. Six cranes, excavators, heavy trucks, building materials everywhere and lots of workers. At the eastern end of the Donawitz steelworks site, Voestalpine is building an electric arc furnace, which is due to go into operation in spring 2027. It will no longer need coal or coke to produce steel, but plenty of scrap - and above all green electricity.