Salzgitter AG has awarded a contract to Italy’s Tenova to supply, install and commission Germany’s largest electric arc furnace (EAF) at its subsidiary Huttenwerke Krupp-Mannesmann (HKM) in Duisburg, marking a major step in the group’s decarbonization strategy.
The new EAF will have a 285-ton tapping weight and an annual production capacity of up to 2.5 mln tons, with planned output of around 2 mln tons per year. Once completed in 2029, it will be the largest electric arc furnace in Germany and the second largest in the European Union.
Construction is scheduled to begin in August 2026.
The furnace will incorporate Tenova’s Consteel continuous charging technology, enabling continuous scrap feeding via a conveyor system while using off-gas heat to preheat scrap. The technology is expected to improve energy efficiency, increase productivity and reduce power demand peaks compared with conventional scrap basket charging. The furnace will also be capable of using a flexible mix of steel scrap, direct reduced iron (DRI) and hot briquetted iron (HBI) to produce a broad range of steel grades.
The contract also covers key auxiliary systems, including the scrap charging conveyor, furnace transformer, cooling water system, electrical equipment and an exhaust gas treatment system.
Salzgitter said the investment represents another key milestone in integrating HKM into the group’s low-carbon steel strategy following the recent acquisition of the Duisburg-based steelmaker.
Salzgitter AG is one of Germany’s leading steel and technology groups, producing flat and long steel products, tubes and engineered solutions for the automotive, construction, energy and industrial sectors. Through its SALCOS (Salzgitter Low CO2 Steelmaking) programme, the company is replacing blast furnace-based steelmaking with hydrogen-ready direct reduction and electric arc furnace technology as part of its transition toward low-carbon steel production.