EU-funded projects advancing cleaner and more energy-efficient steel production

Steel plays a strategic role in the European economy, providing essential inputs to sectors including automotive, construction, electronics and clean technologies. At the same time, the sector faces significant challenges linked to the cost and availability of raw materials and energy, environmental and climate requirements, and competition from producers outside the EU. Energy costs represent a large portion of the total operational costs of steelmaking, making energy efficiency and access to affordable, low-carbon energy important factors for the sector’s competitiveness. 

The transition towards a more competitive and sustainable steel industry therefore requires investment in technologies that can reduce energy use and greenhouse gas emissions while maintaining efficient production. The European Commission has addressed these challenges through recent policy initiatives, including the Clean Industrial Deal, which identifies steel and other energy-intensive industries as sectors that urgently need support to decarbonise, switch to clean energy and tackle high costs and global competition. 

In March 2025, the Commission also presented its Action Plan for Steel and Metals, setting out measures to support affordable and secure energy supply, increase the use of renewable and low-carbon hydrogen, promote circularity, and accelerate industrial decarbonisation. Research and innovation are an important part of this transition, helping to develop and demonstrate technologies that can make steel production more energy-efficient and reduce its reliance on fossil fuels. 

The Horizon Europe European Clean Steel Partnership brings together the European Union and the steel industry to support research and innovation towards climate-neutral steel production. Discover three EU-funded projects, supported under this partnership and managed by HaDEA, that are developing and demonstrating innovative approaches to cleaner heating and energy use in steel production. 

• GreenHeatEAF is developing and demonstrating ways to further reduce the environmental impact of electric arc furnace (EAF) steelmaking by replacing natural gas and other fossil energy sources with hydrogen or renewable carbon sources such as biochar. The project is also investigating ways to optimise heating management and maximise heat recovery from off-gas and slag. By combining pilot tests with digital applications, GreenHeatEAF aims to support the progressive decarbonisation of EAF-based steel production.  
   
• HyTecHeat focuses on hybrid heating technologies that can support the progressive substitution of natural gas with hydrogen in downstream steel processing. The project is testing innovative multifuel burners and assessing the operating limits of existing systems through three demonstration cases, while also evaluating the effects of these technologies on steel products, refractories and combustion systems. Its work also addresses steel quality, identifying processing parameters that can prevent primary scale and associated defects from persisting through to the final product. 
   
• ModHEATech is addressing the decarbonisation of downstream steel production, where energy demand is currently mainly based on fossil fuels. Focusing on rolling mills, the project is developing hybrid heating technologies combining gas-based heating with partial electrification, including induction heating, as well as improved heat recovery. By moving beyond reheating furnaces based on conventional CH₄ burners, ModHEATech aims to reduce the CO₂ emissions associated with this stage of steel production and increase the use of renewable energy for industrial heating.