Moeve and ArcelorMittal launch a joint innovation platform for industrial decarbonisation
Moeve and ArcelorMittal will combine their expertise in innovation, energy solutions and industrial capabilities, to create a new platform for developing projects that have a direct impact on the competitiveness and sustainability of the production sector. The Green Molecules to Green Steel (G2G) partnership behind the platform aims to develop, scale and implement disruptive technologies that enable green molecules to drive the transition to low-emissions steel and industrial decarbonisation.
The new entity, established under their Green Molecules to Green Steel (G2G) partnership, will have both private and public funding to carry out large-scale projects that advance competitiveness and sustainability
The new platform, established as a 50-50 partnership between the two companies, will be financed through a combination of its own resources and public support. Sekuens (the Asturian agency for science, business competitiveness and innovation) will contribute through existing and future initiatives designed to promote innovation in Asturias, Spain. Future participation by other public agencies, at both regional and national levels, as well as private entities, has not been ruled out, provided they are aligned with the platform's objectives and governance structure.
This cross-cutting, public-private partnership will aim to develop industrial demonstrators that will subsequently be scaled up at production facilities. The G2G partnership will place green molecules (such as biomethane and biogas, renewable hydrogen and derivatives, and second-generation biofuels) and other solutions for accelerating decarbonisation (such as more efficient catalysts) at the heart of the new industrial model through a hub driven by Moeve and ArcelorMittal's innovation centres. These laboratories promote disruptive technologies for CO2 capture to add value to this molecule, biotechnology that enables improvements in production processes, and artificial intelligence applied to the creation of new materials.
ArcelorMittal vice president and chief technology officer, Pinakin Chaubal, said, “We need to continue exploring technologies that will enable us to achieve environmentally and economically sustainable production, and we must do so as soon as possible. ArcelorMittal has large R&D centres around the world, particularly in Spain, but given the complexity of the challenge, we will never be able to solve it on our own. Now more than ever, we need to focus on collaborative innovation models, and this platform is an excellent example.”
Sekuens CEO, David González, said, “Sekuens fully supports this initiative, which is pioneering the creation of a unique framework for collaborative innovation among companies.”
Spain is home to ArcelorMittal's two XCarb low-emissions steel projects in Europe (in Sestao, where XCarb is produced from recycled and renewable sources for flat products, and in Gijón, where XCarb is produced for long products), with significant investments and a distinctly innovative approach.