World News

Aquatech & John Laing to Deliver Water Technology as Service for Stegra at the World’s First Large-Scale Green Steel Facility

asianwater
  • Aquatech to deliver comprehensive water management solutions with a 25-year operations contract.
  • The ‘water island’ solution ensures a holistic water management system for the steel plant, including ultra-high-purity water for the electrolyzers, compact strip production mill scale, and purified water for cooling systems.
  • The facility will maximise sustainability by recycling 99.9 per cent of all water back to the system for reuse to achieve zero liquid discharge.

Aquatech has announced a groundbreaking project to deliver an end-to-end solution for all water management needs at Stegra’s (formerly H2 Green Steel) flagship green steel plant in Boden, Sweden. The corporate Private to Private Partnership (PtPP) with Stegra and John Laing will design, build, finance, operate and maintain the critical infrastructure required to run what will be the world’s first large-scale green steel plant.

The plant, supplied and operated by Aquatech and financed by John Laing, allows Stegra to focus on developing its integrated green hydrogen, iron and steel plants. The comprehensive ‘water island’ solution encompasses treatments for ultra-pure water, wastewater recycling, zero liquid discharge, compact strip production mill scale and water for cooling systems, ensuring a holistic water management system for the steel plant.

Stegra is driving one of the largest climate impact initiatives globally. The company was founded in 2020 with the purpose to decarbonize hard-to-abate industries, starting by producing steel with up to 95 per cent lower CO2 emissions than steel made with coke-fired blast furnaces. The construction of the flagship green steel plant in Boden, with integrated green hydrogen and green iron production, is well under way and set to start production of near zero emission steel in 2026.

The water treatment processes are a very important part of our plant, which is the integrated plant for hydrogen, iron and steelmaking globally. What we are doing in Boden is pioneering in every aspect, and it would not be possible without partnerships with players like Aquatech.

Henrik Henriksson, CEO Stegra

Through a 25-year service contract, Aquatech’s Water Technology as a Service approach will ensure the ongoing operation and performance of its installations. Aquatech highlights the importance of reliability and long-term support in water technology services, ensuring that Stegra benefits from uninterrupted service and consistent performance.

“We are thrilled to be involved as a long-term active investor in this exciting project and climate change combative initiative,” said Luke Gorton, Head of Europe, John Laing. “Our experienced, global team looks forward to working closely with our partners at Stegra and Aquatech to optimise the structuring and delivery of this landmark project.”

“This collaboration is pivotal in integrating cutting-edge water treatment technologies to support sustainable low-carbon steel manufacturing and production,” said Simone Callioni, Global Leader of Project Development for Energy Transition, Aquatech. “Our progressive design, build and operation approach enhances project delivery timelines and cost certainty, ensuring each partner can focus on its core strengths. By financing the project with John Laing, we provide the client with the predictable cost of water throughout the lifecycle of operations at no upfront cost, drastically reducing the burden of capital expenditure.”

Stegra’s Boden plant represents a significant advancement in the steel industry by showcasing how innovation and sustainable practices can transform traditional manufacturing processes to achieve a lower carbon footprint and support global sustainability goals.