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Key takeaways from our new report

In July we published our latest sustainability report. It provides a comprehensive explanation of our environmental, social, and governance (ESG) performance. It outlines Ovako’s efforts, achievements, and challenges within the sustainability agenda. By transparently communicating our sustainability initiatives and impacts, we aim to demonstrate our commitment to accountability, responsible business practices, and long-term value creation for stakeholders and the planet alike.

We thought you might like to see just some of the highlights from the many initiatives covered in the report. BUT if you are interested in reading the full report you can do that by following the links below.

Reusing refractory bricks in steelmaking

We are now recovering valuable dolomite from the refractory bricks that line our steel furnaces and ladles when they reach the end of their life. Dolomite is a vital ingredient in the steelmaking process, so now these bricks have a useful second life as a flux for liquid steel.

Despite their excellent refractory properties, the extreme conditions take their toll on the bricks. That means they need replacement at regular intervals, typically once a week. With so many used bricks to dispose of every year, our raw material team decided to look at ways of reusing them.

The result was a three-year trial project that showed grinding the bricks produces a fine powder that works as a successful fluxing. Then, earlier this year, we adopted it on a full-scale production basis at our Hofors mill.

The dolomite that we used to buy in for fluxing – up to 5 000 tonnes a year – has been fully replaced by dolomite from our used bricks. The benefits of the project are twofold. First, there is a major reduction in carbon emissions associated with manufacture and transportation of dolomite – estimated to be more than 3,000 tonnes of CO₂ a year. Second, it is essentially cost-free, bringing a significant saving.

Cutting transportation carbon emissions through collaboration

and flexible thinking

A growing number of customers want to reduce the carbon emissions that arise from the delivery of our steel to their factories. There is an urgent need is for practical solutions that can be applied right now. That is why we ask customers to collaborate with us to apply flexible thinking to existing transportation methods.

One approach that offers tremendous possibilities is to use intermodal transportation. This is a way of shipping our products in the same unit, such as a trailer or swap body, using two or more transport modes, without any direct handling of the products along the way.

This approach does generally involve a trade-off, as the delivery may take one to two days longer than a direct route. The upside is the potentially enormous CO₂ saving, as the carbon footprint can be cut by 50 %. It does not impact the demand for just-in-time deliveries either, since that is about certainty of delivery, rather than speed, and can be accommodated by building in a suitable buffer period.

Flexibility can also be applied to ordering a larger consignment where possible, because smaller loads generally have a proportionally higher carbon footprint. The reason is that smaller consignments often mean more empty mileage or a generally lower load factor.

Clearly, taking flexible approaches to existing transportation methods can make an immediate and significant impact on carbon emissions. And 1 kilogram of carbon saved today is 1 kilogram of carbon saved for ever.

How can adjusting your delivery schedules lead to a 50% reduction in carbon emissions?

Supporting FNSteel’s journey to a green future

A great example of our collaborative approach to sustainability is the major partnership deal with Netherlands company FNsteel. By using low carbon footprint steel from our Smedjebacken mill, FNsteel aims to revolutionize the environmental footprint of premium processed wire rod for Europe’s automotive, construction and engineering sectors.

As a sister company of British Steel, FNSteel is working under the umbrella of the group’s ambitious £1.25-billion transformation towards sustainability. A key element is the planned construction of two Electric Arc Furnaces (EAFs) at Scunthorpe and Teesside in the UK. When these EAFs come online they will help reduce the CO₂ emissions embodied in FNsteel’s raw material by more than 75 %.

During this transitional period, FNsteel is making an immediate move away from carbon-intensive raw material produced in blast furnaces. To achieve this, the company is collaborating with Ovako due to our proven track record in sustainability that embraces fully scrap-based production, efficient processes, and the use of fossil-free electricity. The result is that FNsteel will benefit from a steel raw material with a carbon footprint 80 % lower than the global average.

Since FNsteel processes many thousands of tonnes of steel a year to produce its wire rod, adopting our steel will yield an immediate and huge reduction in the company’s carbon footprint.

Other notable highlights

  Please invite any of your colleagues/networks to join us as we look forward to bringing you news of interesting aspects of the steel business world.

Stay tuned for more exciting updates as we continue to shape the future of steel and redefine what's possible.

AND don't forget to follow our journey on social 👇

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