Following six years of research on the HYBRIT initiative, Vattenfall, SSAB and LKAB have submitted a final report to the Swedish Energy Agency as they aim to advance to an industrial scale.
Led by the energy, steel and mining firms, HYBRIT targets replacing coal and coke in iron production with hydrogen and electricity. H2 View understands the report shows that direct reduced iron produced via HYBRIT’s process has “beneficial properties” compared to conventional production.
A widespread transition across Sweden to HYBRIT’s technology could potentially reduce the country’s total CO2 emissions by over 10%. The initiative has already received several patents and will now continue to the next phase in which the technology is implemented on an industrial scale.
Since its inception, the project has produced more than 5,000 tonnes of hydrogen-reduced iron from its pilot plant in Luleå, with customers including Volvo Group and Epiroc using sustainable steel in its vehicles and machinery.
Andreas Regnell, Head of Strategic Development at Vattenfall and Board Member of Hybrit Development explained, “The next step involves scaling up to an industrial scale where fossil-free electricity and hydrogen are what enable the transition to a future where it is possible for everyone to transport, produce and live fossil-free.”
The General Manager of Hybrit Development, Ulf Spolander added, “The focus of HYBRIT’s technical development has been to build competence and create technical conditions for the implementation of a fossil-free process in full-scale production.
“We are very happy that as a team we were able to deliver successful results that reached or exceeded set project goals. The knowledge and experience we developed during the course of the project will now be focused on continuing technology development, primarily to support the industrialisation of the owner companies.”
The Hybrit Development is set to continue R&D on its lined rock cavern storage plant in Svartöberget, Luleå, in Sweden, up until 2026. This is anticipated to support the industrialisation of the technology.
Read more:HYBRIT tests suggest storage can cut variable hydrogen production costs by 25-40%
Klara Helstad, Head of the Sustainable Industrial Unit at the Swedish Energy Agency, commented on the final report from Vattenfall. She said, “The path towards Net Zero emissions in industry requires investment in innovative and technology-shifting solutions.
“This is where the industrial leap plays an important role. The ambition is that the knowledge from the various initiatives will spread and accelerate the industry’s transition.”
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