The US built the world's first solar steel factory

Powered by a farm of 750,000 solar panels, the steel plant at Pueblo will become "greener", reducing carbon emissions.

EVRAZ Rocky Mountain steel plant in Pueblo, Colorado, USA, will enter a new phase when becoming more environmentally friendly, Interesting Engineering reported on October 25. The plant, which now recycles scrap metal to make steel products, will become the world's first steel plant to run primarily on solar energy.

Steel production often emits large amounts of carbon. (Photo: Maki shmaki/iStock).

The joint venture between Lightsource and BP implements the Bighorn Solar project to build a 300 MW solar farm. The farm's 750,000 solar panels will mainly be installed in the approximately 730 hectares of land owned by the plant.

The project was first announced in 2019 and is already partially operational. Lightsource and BP say it will start operating at full capacity next month. The generated electricity will be sold to Xcel Energy company. The steel mill has a power purchase contract with this company until 2041.

The contract provides provisions to secure electricity prices, a key factor in determining steel product prices, helping the joint venture compete with other coal-powered steelmakers. The contract also helps maintain 1,000 local jobs, where the steel mill is the largest employer.

"Projects like these can help companies last longer and protect jobs through the energy transition. Renewable energy can create a more competitive and sustainable business. " , said Dave Lawler, president of BP in the US.

Iron and steel industry contributes about 2.6 billion tonnes of CO ₂ per year, accounting for 8% of global energy demand and carbon emissions by 7% related to energy, according to the International Energy Agency (IEA). These emissions are roughly equal to all of India's emissions in a year. The iron and steel industry generates so much carbon because the production process relies heavily on coal, a highly polluting fossil fuel.

During most of its operation, the EVRAZ Rocky Mountain plant also uses coal. Bighorn Solar Project is expected to reduce 433,770 tons of carbon helps ₂ emissions into the atmosphere, equivalent to removing 92,100 cars on the road each year.