GERMANY: Infrastructure manager DB InfraGO has awarded Saarstahl Rail a contract to supply an pilot batch of 1 000 tonnes or 22 km of ‘green steel’ rail for use in Nordrhein-Westfalen, Rheinland-Pfalz and Saarland.
The Saarstahl Ascoval plant at Saint-Saulve in France uses an electric arc furnace to produce steel from old rails and scrap. DB said this emits up to 70% less CO2 than using conventional production with a blast furnace using iron ore and coal, with a CO2e-saving of around 1 800 tonnes for 1 000 tonnes of green steel.
On November 5 Jonathan Weber, Saarstahl executive board member responsible for Hayange-based Saarstahl Rail, said DB’s first order for rails produced in this way was ‘a strong signal for sustainable construction’, and ‘a role model for the use of emission-reduced materials in other industries’.
