Japanese steel producer Nippon Steel has selected Nagoya-based special steel producer and plant engineering company Daido Steel to carry out engineering work for its new electric arc furnace (EAF) project at its Setouchi Works in western Japan, the companies announced. The furnace itself will be supplied by Italian plantmaker Tenova.
The EAF will feature a heat size of 110 metric tons per charge and an annual production capacity of approximately 500,000 mt, with operations scheduled to begin in the second half of the fiscal year 2028-29.
Daido Steel will provide engineering services for the entire electric furnace plant, including the EAF and all peripheral equipment. The project forms part of Nippon Steel’s investment program to convert production from a blast furnace route to an electric arc furnace process.
Nippon Steel previously announced plans to expand domestic EAF-based capacity as part of its decarbonization strategy. The Setouchi project has been selected for support under Japan’s Green Transformation Promotion Act. Total investment is estimated at JPY 140 billion ($920 million), of which JPY 42.6 billion will be funded by the Japanese government.
