ABB will provide dry-insulated Resibloc transformers to improve the pilot plant’s energy efficiency
HYBRIT’s pilot plant in Luleå, Sweden, is expected to be in place in 2020. (Credit: ABB/Susanne Lindholm.)
Switzerland-based engineering firm ABB will provide full electrification and automation package for the world’s first large-scale fossil-free steel plant in Luleå, northern Sweden.
The HYBRIT (Hydrogen Breakthrough Ironmaking Technology) pilot project was launched in 2016 by steel, mining and energy companies SSAB, LKAB and Vattenfall with an aim of commercialising the use of hydrogen rather than coal in steel industry.
The initiative has the potential to reduce the Nordic country’s total carbon emissions by 10%.
Three pilot projects have been introduced for the world’s first large-scale fossil-free steel plant.
HYBRIT’s pilot plant is expected to ready in 2020. Swedish-Finnish steel producer SSAB aims to introduce the first fossil-free steel by 2026.
By 2035, the companies intend to sell fossil-free steel on a wider scale.
ABB to deliver electrification and automation package as an eHouse solution
ABB will provide dry-insulated Resibloc transformers to improve the pilot plant’s energy efficiency. The transformers combine low environmental impact with high personal safety and intelligent, low-voltage Universal Motor Controller (UMC) switchgears, collectively with ABB frequency converters.
For superior flexibility in design and better scalability, the HYBRIT’s pilot plant will be incorporated into the latest version of ABB Ability 800xA with Select I/O solutions.
The company will also supply its Ability System 800xA Simulator, a software simulation solution that offers operators to learn and test processes in a disconnected, safe and offline environment to allow swift commissioning and reduce the risk of unplanned shutdowns.
ABB North Europe process industries hub business line manager Björn Jonsson said: “HYBRIT is a milestone for the Swedish steel industry and a crucial step in Sweden’s transition to a more sustainable society.
“We are extremely proud that ABB technology can make such a valuable contribution to creating fossil-free steel production.”
ABB stated that it will provide electrification and automation as an eHouse solution.
According to the company, the solution features the location of three containers outside the pilot plant, for power distribution, low-voltage switchgears and frequency converters, and control systems.