February 2024 | Demand of 143,000 tonnes of hydrogen to be covered: thyssenkrupp Steel launches tendering process for the hydrogen supply of the first direct reduction plant at the Duisburg site.
thyssenkrupp Steel is pressing ahead with the development of the hydrogen economy. The company has officially launched the tender for the hydrogen supply for its first direct reduction plant.
In conjunction with two innovative melters, this is the key function of the first transformation step in thyssenkrupp’s decarbonisation as part of the tkH2Steel project. The hydrogen requirement is being tendered in a transparent and broad-based process. The aim is to operate the direct reduction plant with 100% hydrogen as early as 2029.
The tender is being organised in close cooperation with the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Protection (BMWK), which, together with the state of North Rhine-Westphalia, is funding the innovative plant project and the associated hydrogen ramp-up with a total of around two billion euros.
This will make it possible to dispense with natural gas at an early stage and at the same time give the go-ahead for the hydrogen ramp-up in Germany.
Decarbonisation project tkH2Steel
The direct reduction plant, together with the two downstream smelters, will be integrated into Europe’s largest steelworks as a technologically new plant combination, whereby all downstream process steps from the steelworks can be retained. The 100 percent hydrogen-capable direct reduction plant has a production capacity of 2.5 million tonnes of directly reduced iron per year.
The first use of hydrogen is planned for the plant combination in 2028, with the ramp-up to full hydrogen operation to be completed in 2029. After that, the use of around 143,000 tonnes of hydrogen (equivalent to 5.6 terawatt hours) will already save up to 3.5 million tonnes of CO2 per year.
As the largest German hydrogen consumer, thyssenkrupp Steel is thus the initiator and driver of a hydrogen economy, paving the way for the decarbonisation of the entire steel value chain.
“With this tender, we are sending a clear signal for the scaling of the European hydrogen economy and the necessary infrastructure. With this step, we are giving our customers greater planning security when it comes to purchasing climate-friendly steel produced with hydrogen and thus the opportunity to significantly reduce the carbon footprint of their own production. We are thus making an important contribution to achieving the climate targets in Germany and Europe.” says Dr Arnd Köfler, Chief Technology Officer at thyssenkrupp Steel.
Tender runs in three phases
The tender for hydrogen volumes was already advertised on various federal and EU portals in mid-December. The tendering process is divided into three phases and is aimed at all potential hydrogen suppliers who have projects for the production of renewable green or low-CO2 blue hydrogen with delivery options to Duisburg.
All interested suppliers will receive an information pack on the tendering process at the start of the first tendering phase, which begins in February 2024 and ends with the swift conclusion of binding supply contracts.
“We are delighted that we are taking another significant step forward on our transformation path with this tender,” adds Köfler.