Electric Arc Furnaces for Steel Production

The Glenbrook Steel Mill in Auckland, New Zealand, plans to install an electric arc furnace (EAF) by 2026 to replace half of its coal-based ironmaking. Supported by a $300 million investment and GIDI co-funding, the project will use a 30 MW renewable-energy agreement with Contact Energy to leverage New Zealand's approximately 90% renewable grid. This transition is expected to reduce the mill's annual emissions by up to 1 million tonnes of CO2e.

• The Glenbrook Steel Mill, New Zealand's only fully integrated steel producer, produces approximately 650,000 tonnes of steel annually and currently uses a coal-based process to reduce ironsand.
• A $300 million investment, including Government Investment in Decarbonising Industry (GIDI) co-funding, will be used to install an electric arc furnace (EAF) to replace 50% of the mill's coal-based ironmaking, with an expected annual emissions reduction of 1 million tonnes of CO2e starting in 2026.
• The EAF will be powered by a 30 MW renewable-energy supply agreement with Contact Energy, utilizing a national grid that is roughly 90% renewable.

APA

Climate TRACE (2025). Electric Arc Furnaces for Steel Production. https://media.climatetrace.org/CT_New_Zealand_Steel_2_2e7dfa025f.pdf

Chicago

Climate TRACE. Electric Arc Furnaces for Steel Production. 2025. https://media.climatetrace.org/CT_New_Zealand_Steel_2_2e7dfa025f.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Climate TRACE |title=Electric Arc Furnaces for Steel Production |date=December 2025 |url=https://media.climatetrace.org/CT_New_Zealand_Steel_2_2e7dfa025f.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{climatetrace2025electric, author = {{Climate TRACE}}, title = {{Electric Arc Furnaces for Steel Production}}, institution = {Climate TRACE}, year = {2025}, month = dec, url = {https://media.climatetrace.org/CT_New_Zealand_Steel_2_2e7dfa025f.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }