Surprise! Steel is going to make a comeback, but in a little different format than previously. Green steel is the new thing. Not colored green, but made with sustainable energy sources. A surprising new industry could bring countless jobs to the Rust Belt: ‘This … prioritizes American workers’ I'm not sure how much of this is wishful thinking, or if it needs so much government support that it's just not feasible, or if all of the details have been worked out.
So people would want to use "green steel"? Would it be more expensive? Would it be similar to someone buying an electric car or eating organic food?
I would assume they are referring to secondary steel (ie., recycled steel) in arc furnaces. We don't have a lot of quality iron ore in the US anymore, but still have lots of scrap.
I thought this was a story about Reardon steel. Oh well. Good for the “Made in America”, actually brought to you by Bidenomics. https://home.treasury.gov/news/press-releases/jy1477
Manufacturers would want to use any material that would make things cheaper to build. Don't think they would be able to use it for structural steel in a building but pressed steel panels for things like washers and dryers?, sure. Might be cheaper than paying the shipping for overseas made steel.
I picked up a bunch of this back in 2020 and they recently built a plant nearby. I’m pleased. NUE Nucor steel.
I believe there will also be price / tax offsets for green steel vs traditional steel for carbon reduction in building the strucvture. It's all about the tax credits to encourage less carbon. 'Green steel will become cheaper than grey in US as soon as hydrogen tax credits kick in': analyst | Hydrogen news and intelligence (hydrogeninsight.com) The forthcoming US hydrogen tax credits of up to $3/kg will make steel produced using green H2 the cheapest type of steel in the US, according to analyst Rethink Energy. When the H2-DRI process is combined with a renewables-powered electric arc furnace to turn the iron into steel, the resulting product is known as green steel. “The US can be regarded as ‘ahead of the competition’, when it comes to the price of green steel,” the UK-based analyst writes in a report entitled Green Steel Premium: Myth or Reality? “With already very low prices for green hydrogen production (around $3.35/kg) the imminent subsidy of up to $3/kg as part of Biden’s Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) will prompt green steel to undercut all other forms of steel manufacturing as soon as the subsidy kicks in, in 2024.” ................. The report goes on to say that “blue steel” produced using blue H2 derived from natural gas with carbon capture and storage will also be cheaper than grey steel made using coke, thanks to a smaller subsidy under the IRA (see panel below) — but will still be more expensive than green steel. The EU’s plans to enforce a carbon border adjust mechanism in 2026 that will tax imports according to their carbon content will make US green steel an attractive proposition for European buyers, Rethink says. “The divergence in price between sustainable steel processes and fossil fuel based methods past 2025 will only represent the final nail in the already built coffin for traditional steel manufacturing procedures,” it
I believe that is blue steel but it will still get a significant tax advantage due to reduced carbon footprint. downside is it will consume nat gas which will increase price of nat gas for FPL and others. hopefully the state could add some hdyrogen based operations with all of our sunshine and seawater
I don't think very many people will buy steel because it is green. The best advertising will be a sticker that says "contains green steel". There isn't much prestige in a sticker after the initial purchase, for most people anyway. Many people like to show off something like a Prius car that screams "eco-friendly". You won't be able to tell once the sticker comes off that something was made with green steel. We are currently buying steel from China, South Korea, and other places. It is possible that our trade issues with China force the price of steel higher, making green steel more competitive. Also, the article seems to forecast the day that the U.S. produces more power, especially by renewables, than we can use. It happens on rare occasions even now in some places. In Texas, they sometimes have to shut off the wind turbines when there is too much electricity being produced. The power companies buy power from the producers, who bid on what they want to sell power for. When the wind guy bids too much and his bid doesn't get accepted, he turns off the turbines. My guess is that Europe makes green steel before we do. Iceland already makes a lot of aluminum with the geothermal energy they have so much of. Seems like they could also make steel with it.
I guess my Ayn Rand Atlas Shrugged objectivism joke didn’t land with you. I will try harder next time.
U.S. Steel is trying to pick a buyer, and companies are fighting over it. I just hope we can afford whatever the cost is for Biden's Inflation Reduction Act, which sounds remarkably like digging your way out of a hole. ("We're spending too much money, and that's causing inflation. So let's spend some more money, and see if that solves the problem.") Biden’s Steel Boom Helps Spark Bidding War for an American Icon
