Japanese steelmaker JFE Steel has announced that it will build an advanced, high-efficiency and large-scale electric arc furnace (EAF) at its Kurashiki plant within the scope of Japan’s carbon-neutrality goals.
With support from funding to be provided by the Japanese government, the company will immediately begin the construction of its new EAF along with other auxiliary facilities, entailing an investment of about JPY 329.4 billion ($2.31 billion). JPY 104.5 billion ($732.56 million) of the investment is expected to be financed by the government funding.
The EAF will use JFE’s own technologies and other innovative technologies, including high-efficiency melting, that are being developed under a separate initiative to promote the use of hydrogen as a reducing agent to lower carbon emissions in steelmaking. As a result, the company aims to become the world’s first mass supplier of high-quality steel products, such as electromagnetic steel sheets and high-tensile steel sheets.
In addition, the EAF will have a production capacity of about 2 million mt per year, with the start-up scheduled for the first quarter of the financial year 2028-29.