The push to decarbonise European steelmaking suffered a fresh blow last week as ArcelorMittal turned down more than €1bn in public subsidies to convert its German plants to run on greener hydrogen.
The company blamed the prohibitively high cost of energy, just as Swedish steel producer SSAB also admitted to delays at its flagship low-emission steel mill inside the Arctic Circle, citing issues with reliability of the power grid.
Energy costs are among the myriad challenges faced by manufacturers that have looked to “green steel” as a way of cutting their emissions, with others ranging from the billions in upfront capital required to a lack of hydrogen infrastructure and underwhelming demand for costlier low-carbon products.