According to LIBERTY Steel, the 160-metric-ton EAF will be built by Danieli and will be equipped to accept electricity directly from renewable sources. The company also will build a 1.8-million-metric-ton direct reduction furnace that will convert local magnetite to iron. At first, the plant will consume both natural gas and green hydrogen, but will transition fully to green hydrogen as it becomes available at scale.

LIBERTY Steel said engineering work is already well underway. Construction is expected to be completed in 2025. 
“Today marks the beginning of a new era placing Whyalla at the heart of a global revolution in the steel industry, moving it from being the most polluting of all industries to among the cleanest and greenest,” said executive chairman Sanjeev Gupta. 

“Through the steps we’re taking to install state-of-the-art low-carbon iron- and steelmaking technologies here in Whyalla we will not only support Australia’s climate ambitions, but we will help to decarbonize steel supply chains globally,” he added. 

As part of the conversion plan, the company intends to grow magnetite production to 15 million metric tons annually, providing the feedstock for 10 million metric tons of annual green direct reduced iron DRI production. The output would support Australian green steel production as well the export markets, feeding its network of EAFs in Asia, Europe, and the U.K. 

To get there, the company said it will overhaul operations, adding sophisticated mineral processing techniques at the mines, with state-of -the-art iron- and steelmaking facilities, large-scale hydrogen production and storage facilities all connected to renewable electricity generation. 

“Whyalla has some of the best conditions to make low-carbon iron and steel anywhere in the world and with our magnetite expansion plans, coupled with South Australia’s endless resource for renewable energy and green hydrogen, the potential for Whyalla has no bounds,” Gupta said.