ALGOMA STEEL INC.

The making of steel at ASI requires a lot of energy and involves the three primary materials of metallurgic coal as coke, limestone, and iron ore. These three materials are heated in a blast furnace to produce molten iron in a process known as ironmaking. The primary source of the energy needed to reduce iron ore to molten iron in the blast furnace comes from the heating of the pulverized metallurgic coal in the absence of oxygen in coke oven batteries to produce coke. This heating process is known as cokemaking. Volatile contaminants released during the coking cycle are collected and cleaned at the By-Products Plant as a fuel source within the steel plant and chemicals such tars and light oils are sold to commercial markets.

Scrap metal along with refined molten iron from the blast furnace is processed in the Basic Oxygen Furnace (BOF) at the Basic Oxygen Steelmaking Plant (BOSP). Metal alloys (manganese, chromium, etc.) are added to the refined molten iron in a ladle metallurgy furnace to produce the desired qualities and properties needed for the final product (tensile strength, ductility, formability, etc.). Finishing and strip mills create rolled sheet steel and plate steel products, and apply the necessary coatings (texture, rust resistance, etc.) depending on the application required by the customer. The entire process is known as steelmaking. 

The concept of using an electric arc to produce steel was first considered around the 1850s.  The Electric Arc Furnace (EAF) became an important part of steelmaking in the United Kingdom and the United States since the 1970s.  ArcelorMittal Dofasco was the first steelmaker in Ontario to build an electric arc furnace in 1996.  Algoma Steel despite seriously considering the technology over the last 10 years, choose not to invest in it.  

Electric arc furnaces (EAFs) do not use coke as a primary fuel source, so they generate much less greenhouse gas emissions than traditional methods that use coke oven batteries and blast furnaces. They are recognized as a more environmentally friendly solution to produce "green" steel to fight climate change.  Despite this benefit, they require significant amounts of energy and the type of energy used impacts their overall carbon footprint.  

EAFs can generate and release many types of contaminants including iron oxides, and multiple heavy metals such as chromium VI, cadmium and lead.  The primary concern from their operation is the release of dioxins and furans.  Dioxins and furans have serious health and environmental impacts. These contaminants have impacted the human consumption of whitefish in the Great Lakes. Currently, dioxins and furans are not modelled as being released by Algoma Steel since there are no EAFs.

"There will be a set of new contaminants that will have to be managed and mitigated."

"The most concerning are dioxins and furans . . . the federal and provincial governments both have rules, existing and under development, related to those."  - Fred Post (ASI Environment Manager)

To meet greenhouse gas emissions targets, the Canadian federal government has committed to investing $420 million dollars of taxpayer money to Algoma Steel to transition to EAF technology.

The plan would involve the shutdown of all coke oven batteries and blast furnaces.  This ambitious plan is not without its concerns including millions of more tax dollars and a commitment to pay for infrastructure to power the EAFs.  Currently, there is only enough power to operate one electric arc furnace and the realization of having two EAFs at Algoma Steel to complete this transition will also involve a power subsidy due to high energy costs of the using this technology.  

 "There is a transition where we would be required to continue to operate our existing facilities – blast furnace and coke oven batteries – because the grid power supply is not available to run both electric arc furnaces simultaneously," Post told this month's meeting of Sault Ste. Marie's environmental sustainability committee.

Source: https://www.sootoday.com/local-news/latest-on-algoma-steels-big-switch-to-electric-arc-steelmaking-3975529

Algoma Steel has committed to bringing a new EAF online by 2024 but the complete transition will not occur for at least 6-8 years depending on market conditions and permitting.