(new: update with statement Habeck in the 4th paragraph.)
BERLIN/DUISBURG (dpa-AFX) – The Federal Ministry of Economics has confirmed its support for the construction of a plant for the climate-friendly production of steel by thyssenkrupp in Duisburg. The “tkH2steel” project is of great importance for the decarbonization of industry and the future of Germany as an industrial location, the ministry announced on Monday in Berlin. The occasion was the previously unofficially announced visit by Federal Minister of Economics Robert Habeck (Greens) to the company headquarters in Essen and to the Thyssenkrupp steel site in Duisburg. Habeck was accompanied by his North Rhine-Westphalian colleague Mona Neubaur (Greens).
Germany’s largest steelmaker, Thyssenkrupp, plans to commission the new large-scale, hydrogen-capable plant for iron production at the end of 2026. Initially, the so-called direct reduction plant (DR plant) is to be operated with natural gas, and from the end of 2027 also with increasing amounts of hydrogen. The project costs well over two billion euros. The state and federal government want to fund the project with a total of around two billion euros. However, approval by the EU Commission is still pending.
In mid-May, high-ranking employee representatives from Thyssenkrupp wrote an open letter to Habeck and urged approval of the promised funding. It is feared that if the project and other Grünstahl projects fail, the future of the Thyssenkrupp steel division with 27,000 employees is at stake.
“We stand by our funding commitments and will do everything we can in exchange with the European Commission to make this aid possible,” said Habeck, according to a statement. The steel industry is deeply anchored in Germany. “We will also need them here in the country and in Europe in the future.” Green steel made in Germany and Europe is possible. “We want to show that and that’s why we’re working with all our might to make the necessary support possible.”
López thanked the federal and state governments for the “continued and determined support in the green transformation of steel production”. But you are not yet where you need to be. The approval process at the EU Commission is ongoing. “However, we now need planning and legal certainty for the implementation of the next steps of the green transformation.”
The ministry is “still clear about its commitment and is in contact with the EU Commission,” it said in Berlin. “We are also in constant contact with representatives of Thyssenkrupp Steel Europe and the state of North Rhine-Westphalia.” They want to make the approximately two billion euros in funding possible.
Mona Neubaur, Deputy Prime Minister of North Rhine-Westphalia and Minister for Economic Affairs, Industry, Climate Protection and Energy in North Rhine-Westphalia, held talks in Essen and Duisburg today with the management of ThyssenKrupp and representatives of the ThyssenKrupp trade unions and employee representatives. The discussions focused on the challenges of decarbonizing the steel industry.
Neubaur emphasized the importance of the project for the labor market: “Thyssenkrupp’s climate-neutral transformation is the basis for sustainable employment for tens of thousands of employees.” This applies to Thyssenkrupp itself as well as to suppliers and metalworking companies in North Rhine-Westphalia and beyond./tob/DP/men
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