Swedish specialty steelmaker SSAB has announced that it has been awarded SEK 314 million ($33.24 million) in funding from Sweden’s Industrial Leap program, administered by the Swedish Energy Agency, to advance electrification and energy efficiency at its new fossil-free steel mill in Luleå.
The funding supports SSAB’s broader €4.5 billion investment to build a fully integrated, near-zero emission steel plant with a production capacity of 2.5 million mt, replacing conventional blast furnace technology with electric arc furnaces (EAFs). This transformation is expected to cut the company’s carbon emissions by approximately 90 percent, equivalent to seven percent of Sweden’s total national emissions.
Industrial Leap program backs electrification of finishing processes
The Industrial Leap grant targets a sub-project focusing on the finishing stages of steel slab production, which are still dependent on natural gas and propane. The project will lead to an estimated 169,000 mt of carbon-equivalent reductions per year and energy savings of around 555 GWh annually. The project timeline runs from May 2025 to June 2026, covering detailed engineering, grid connection, automation, and infrastructure design.
SSAB noted that beyond the environmental gains, the investment will deliver lower fixed costs, shorter production lead times, and greater operational flexibility, strengthening its competitiveness in the global green steel market.
Complementary funding and broader climate strategy
This new grant follows earlier public support of SEK 1.45 billion ($153.47 million) provided through the EU’s Just Transition Fund and the Swedish Agency for Economic and Regional Growth, which financed the blast furnace replacement up to the continuous casting stage.
Meanwhile, SSAB Borlänge remains a key production site, contributing to the company’s goal of achieving a climate-neutral operation by 2030, reinforcing SSAB’s leadership in the transition to fossil-free steelmaking.