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BMW intends to invest in green electrometallurgy

16.03.2021

Automobile manufacturer The BMW Group has decided to invest through its venture fund BMW i Ventures in the American startup Boston Metal, founded under the auspices of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and supported by Bill Gates.

We are systematically encountering raw materials and components with high CO2 emissions in production in our supplier network. Metal products are one of them, but they are important for the automotive industry. Therefore, we have set ourselves the goal of continuously reducing CO2 emissions in our steel supply chain.

Andreas Wendt, Member of the Management Board of BMW, responsible for purchasing

According to him, by 2030, CO2 emissions should be cut down by approximately 2 million tons as compared to the current level.

Bill Gates invests in green metallurgy

Boston Metal has invented a technology to produce a completely new CO2 emission-free steel using electricity and plans to bring its use to industrial scale. The essence of the technology is to pass an electric current through a 2-meter chamber, inside which there is a “soup of molten oxides”, including iron ore.

Then other elements are added to the obtained pure iron, as a result of which high-quality carbon-free steel is received at the end of this process (subject to the use of electricity from renewable sources).

As previously reported by the Financial Times, such small modules can substitute massive blast furnaces at the production facilities that are large generators of carbon dioxide. At the same time, high electricity prices are a significant obstacle to the implementation of such projects.

If our electricity costs were at the same level as those of aluminum producers – and this is from $ 15 to $ 35 per MWh – then we would be competitive even without the carbon tax. And it will really change the world.

Tadeu Carneiro, Chief Executive Officer of Boston Metal

Decarbonization in Ukraine

In Ukraine, the only incentive for decarbonization of the steelmaking industry is the green metallurgy rule, according to which enterprises that have cut their CO2 emissions down to the European target level will be able to apply for a small reduction in the electricity tariff.

However, such rule exists in theory only. Six months after the adoption of the relevant law, the incentive did not get rolling due to the inability of the Cabinet of Ministers to develop the necessary legislative instruments.

Automobile manufacturer The BMW Group has decided to invest through its venture fund BMW i Ventures in the American startup Boston Metal, founded under the auspices of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and supported by Bill Gates.

We are systematically encountering raw materials and components with high CO2 emissions in production in our supplier network. Metal products are one of them, but they are important for the automotive industry. Therefore, we have set ourselves the goal of continuously reducing CO2 emissions in our steel supply chain.

Andreas Wendt, Member of the Management Board of BMW, responsible for purchasing

According to him, by 2030, CO2 emissions should be cut down by approximately 2 million tons as compared to the current level.

Bill Gates invests in green metallurgy

Boston Metal has invented a technology to produce a completely new CO2 emission-free steel using electricity and plans to bring its use to industrial scale. The essence of the technology is to pass an electric current through a 2-meter chamber, inside which there is a “soup of molten oxides”, including iron ore.

Then other elements are added to the obtained pure iron, as a result of which high-quality carbon-free steel is received at the end of this process (subject to the use of electricity from renewable sources).

As previously reported by the Financial Times, such small modules can substitute massive blast furnaces at the production facilities that are large generators of carbon dioxide. At the same time, high electricity prices are a significant obstacle to the implementation of such projects.

If our electricity costs were at the same level as those of aluminum producers – and this is from $ 15 to $ 35 per MWh – then we would be competitive even without the carbon tax. And it will really change the world.

Tadeu Carneiro, Chief Executive Officer of Boston Metal

Decarbonization in Ukraine

In Ukraine, the only incentive for decarbonization of the steelmaking industry is the green metallurgy rule, according to which enterprises that have cut their CO2 emissions down to the European target level will be able to apply for a small reduction in the electricity tariff.

However, such rule exists in theory only. Six months after the adoption of the relevant law, the incentive did not get rolling due to the inability of the Cabinet of Ministers to develop the necessary legislative instruments.