Rio Tinto to invest $215m in low-carbon ironmaking facility
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The news: Rio Tinto will invest USD143 million ($215 million) to develop a research and development facility in Western Australia to further assess the effectiveness of its low-carbon ironmaking process, BioIronTM, and support the decarbonisation of the global steel value chain.
The numbers: The new facility has been designed in collaboration with University of Nottingham, Metso Corporation and WA-based engineering company Sedgman Onyx, with fabrication of equipment set to begin this year and commissioning expected in 2026.
These works are expected to support up to 60 construction jobs, while the facility will employ around 30 full-time employees.
The context: BioIron uses raw biomass and microwave energy instead of coal to convert Pilbara iron ore to metallic iron in the steelmaking process. When combined with the use of renewable energy and carbon-circulation by fast-growing biomass, BioIron has the potential to reduce carbon emissions by up to 95% compared with the current blast furnace method.
The facility will be the first time the process will have been tested at a semi-industrial scale, capable of producing one tonne of direct reduced iron per hour - 10 times bigger than its predecessor in Germany.
Rio's investment will also fund space for equipment testing to support further scaling up of the BioIron technology, while developing a workforce highly skilled in steel decarbonisation and supporting WA universities and research organisations.
What they said: Rio Tinto iron ore CEO Simon Trott said: "The world needs low-carbon steel to reach net zero, and we are working to make this a reality by finding better ways to turn our Pilbara ores into steel.
"BioIron is a world-first technology that has the potential to play a significant role in a low-carbon steel future."
WA premier Roger Cook said: "Our plan to turn WA into a renewable energy powerhouse opens up massive economic opportunities for the future, like producing low-emission steel right here at home.
"This is another job-creating clean energy project in our industrial heartland of Kwinana and Rockingham, part of our commitment to transitioning the industrial strip to a clean energy future."
The source: Rio Tinto media release
