Power4Steel project Enters Its Next Phase of Development
The Power4Steel giga project is becoming reality: As here in Dillingen, all signs point to the future at the Völklingen site.
Federal Chancellor Friedrich Merz and Minister-President Anke Rehlinger were in Dillingen in Germany to see for themselves the Power4Steel project as it enters its next phase of development and to learn about Y-SIC, which opens up new technological perspectives in the semiconductor industry.
The transformation of Saarland's steel industry is making great strides. In the presence of Federal Chancellor Friedrich Merz and Saarland's Prime Minister Anke Rehlinger, SHS - Stahl-Holding-Saar (SHS) today presented the current status of its Power4Steel transformation project at the Dillingen site and at the same time presented a forward-looking technology scale-up with Y-SIC Holding GmbH (Y-SIC). Both projects represent the claim of the Saarland steel industry to actively shape industrial change: by decarbonising steel production and opening up new fields of technology.
With Power4Steel, the Saarland steel industry is investing 4.6 billion Euros in the climate-neutral conversion of steel production in Dillingen and Völklingen. The project is claimed to be the largest industrial decarbonisation project in Europe and is supported by Germany's federal and state governments with 2.6 billion Euros.
According to SHS, the progress of the 'giga project' is also clearly visible on site: Of the total of around 120 buildings that are being built at the two sites as part of the transformation, the first have already been completed. After extensive construction preparations and foundation work, Power4Steel is now growing upwards. In particular, the new direct reduction plant (DRI), which is around 140 metres high and a centerpiece of the new production route, will shape the image at the Dillingen site in the future and at the same time embody the dimension of the transformation with its size.
With its investment in Y-SIC, the Saarland steel industry is expanding its view beyond classic steel production. The deeptech company has developed a new process for the industrial production of high-purity silicon carbide (SiC). The material is claimed to offer enormous potential for technological advances, especially in the semiconductor industry.
The Saarland steel industry is involved in the Y-SIC scale-up as an industrial partner together with the state of Saarland. The financing will be used to build the first commercial production plant for silicon carbide on Dillinger's factory premises. There, SiC powder is to be produced continuously on an industrial scale using a newly devised, more energy-efficient and environmentally friendly process. The aim is to produce silicon carbide competitively in Europe for the first time. This is intended to close an important gap in the European value chain of a key industry and reduce dependence on non-European supply chains for a strategically important material.
"With Power4Steel, we are transforming our entire business model. In addition to a historic construction project of 4.6 billion euros for the new liquid phase, we are changing our raw material and energy mix, numerous processes and IT systems as well as a large part of our cost base and supplying our customers withCO2-reduced steel. This makes Power4Steel the central building block for the long-term competitiveness of the SHS Group."
——Jonathan Weber, Managing director of SHS – Stahl-Holding-Saar and Member of the executive board for finance and transformation of Saarstahl and Dillinger.
Stefan Rauber, chairman of the Management Board of SHS - Stahl-Holding-Saar and chairman of the board of Management of Saarstahl and Dillinger commented, "The future needs pioneers – this has been true for our companies for more than 400 years and today more than ever. With Power4Steel, we are creating the conditions for a new era of steel production in Saarland. At the same time, we are opening up additional business areas. With Y-SIC, we are continuing on this path: The silicon carbide start-up combines a high level of innovation with the potential for new industrial value creation. Power4Steel and Y-SIC combine industrial strength, technological progress and sustainability and point the way to the future of our group of companies and Saarland as an industrial location."