Green electricity for green steel production

IG Merbitz Solar GmbH is supplying solar power to the Salzgitter steel group. The long-term power purchase agreement (PPA) provides for a ground-mounted photovoltaic plant with a capacity of around 71 megawatts.

Salzgitter Flachstahl has signed a green electricity supply agreement (PPA) with IG Merbitz Solar GmbH. The electricity is to be sourced from an open-space photovoltaic plant currently under construction at the Merbitz site in Saxony-Anhalt. “The electricity supply agreement now concluded between our two companies underlines the importance of renewable energies for the energy transition in Germany and for the Salzgitter site – where virtually CO₂-free steel will be produced from 2026 onwards,” said Ralph Schaper, Head of Energy Management at Salzgitter Flachstahl GmbH.
With this Power Purchase Agreement, Salzgitter Flachstahl has secured the supply of around 71 MWh/a of green electricity from Merbitz at a fixed price for 10 years from January 2025, as well as the option to store this electricity on-site in the interim.
The sustainably produced energy further underpins the SALCOS® – Salzgitter Low CO2 Steelmaking transformation programme. The green electricity from the photovoltaic systems will initially form part of Salzgitter Flachstahl’s standard ‘electricity procurement portfolio’. In the long term, the plan is to use the electricity for the production of green hydrogen. Green hydrogen is a key element in the Salzgitter Group’s production of virtually CO₂-free steel.
Source: Salzgitter AG