Carbalyst®, also known as Steelanol, is our flagship carbon capture and re-use technology project. The technology, developed by our partner LanzaTech, involves capturing carbon-rich waste gases emitted from the blast furnace during the steelmaking process and converting them into recycled carbon chemicals.
Our first Carbalyst® project is an industrial-scale demonstration plant at our steelworks in Ghent, Belgium. The €180 million project not only reduces CO2 emissions at the plant by 125,000 tonnes per year, but also results in the production of 80 million litres of bio-ethanol per annum, which can be blended with traditional gasoline as a low-carbon alternative fuel for the transport sector.
Kristof Verbeeck, support manager for Carbalyst®, explains more about the project in the video below:
In April 2021, ArcelorMittal Belgium marked a major milestone in the construction of its pioneering Carbalyst® project, with the arrival and lifting of four giant bioreactors at the Gent steel plant. The bioreactors, which will convert industrial gases captured during the steelmaking process into sustainable ethanol, are the central element of the installation, making their arrival and lifting the final major part of the Carbalyst® construction phase and the beginning of the next phase is installing pipes and connect the equipment.
The plant is scheduled to be commissioned before the end of 2022, and we are currently working to develop partnerships with potential customers for the use of this new product. The sales of bio-ethanol from our Carbalyst® process are anticipated to translate into increased revenues, forecast initially at c. €75 million a year. These could expand as we develop other bio-chemicals and bio-materials, including bio-plastic, bio-fabrics and biochemicals.
Carbalyst® site, ArcelorMittal Belgium