The investment by ArcelorMittal Mining Canada (AMMC) allows the facility to convert the entire plant to direct reduced iron (DRI) pellets by the end of 2025. The 10-million-metric-ton facility will be set to become one of the world's largest producers of DRI pellets with the investment of electricity rebate from the Quebec government of up to CA$80 million.

“This project has an important role to play in our efforts to reduce our group’s CO₂e emissions intensity by 25% by 2030, and our longer-term ambition to reach net zero by 2050. Not only does it deliver a significant reduction in our emissions at AMMC, but it also expands our ability to produce high-quality direct reduced iron pellets, which we will need in significant volumes as we transition to DRI-EAF steelmaking at our steel plants in Canada and Europe,” said Aditya Mittal, chief executive officer of ArcelorMittal.

“I am grateful to Premier Legault and his government for the support it is providing in realizing this project. It is the first significant decarbonization project we have announced for our mining business and fitting that we are able to make this announcement at COP26 as it exemplifies the transformational change we need to deliver this decade as we move toward becoming a carbon-neutral business.”    

The investment is expected to create approximately 250 jobs during the construction stage of the project. It is currently scheduled to begin mid-2023 and finish before the end of 2025.

Read the full press release here.