Sweden’s SSAB today announced that it is launching a partnership with Mercedes-Benz to supply the automaker with carbon-neutral steel for its upcoming vehicles.
The two aim to get fossil-free steel into vehicle production as soon as possible. The first prototype parts for body shells made of the steel are being planned for next year, the steelmaker said in a press release.
By 2039 at the latest, Mercedes-Benz plans to make its entire value chain carbon neutral for its passenger-car fleet, so finding fossil-free steel will be important.
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When Volvo announced a similar partnership with the same company earlier this year, it revealed that about 35 percent of the CO2 used in the manufacture of its vehicles comes from steel. Although that number dips to 20 percent in electric vehicles, it’s still a considerable chunk of a car’s manufacturing carbon footprint. Moreover, the steel industry alone accounts for seven percent of all global direct carbon emissions.
“We are extremely happy to welcome Mercedes-Benz as a partner for fossil-free steel products. Together, we are building an entirely fossil-free value chain all the way to the end customer,” said Martin Lindqvist, President and CEO of SSAB. “We are proud to reduce global carbon dioxide emissions in collaboration with our new partner.”
SSAB hopes to provide the market with fossil-free steel at a commercial level in 2026. It will achieve this by converting its blast furnaces to electric arc furnaces. By doing this, it will be able to stop using coking coal, replacing it instead with fossil-free electricity and hydrogen, which virtually eliminates carbon dioxide emissions in steelmaking.
Mercedes-Benz is just one of a number of automakers looking to make its business carbon-neutral in the coming years.
