ROGESA Roheisen- und Rohstoffgesellschaft Saar mbH is planning the construction of an innovative processing plant for shredded steel and iron scrap, known as shear scrap, at its Dillingen/Saar site. The plant, which is scheduled to start operation in the second half of 2028, is designed to enable the resource-efficient production of high-quality "green" steel. A prerequisite for this is a copper content in the scrap that is as low as possible.
The planned plant combines material preparation, AI-supported object recognition and X-ray-based analytics in a new type of process. Compared with conventional market processes, it reduces copper input more efficiently and requires significantly fewer resources. Impurities in the shear scrap, in particular trace elements from free copper, are to be reduced by around 30 percent.
Savings potential in energy, CO₂ and primary raw materials
The process makes it possible to save up to 16 gigawatt hours of energy and up to 76,000 tonnes of CO₂ per year. In addition, around 63,000 tonnes of direct reduced iron (DRI) and primary raw materials can be saved annually. The background is that the use of shear scrap within production is to be maximised, while the use of DRI as a primary resource in the electric arc furnace is to be optimised to the level necessary for the production of high-quality steel.
Role of scrap and DRI in the green transformation
ROGESA is a joint subsidiary of Aktiengesellschaft der Dillinger Hüttenwerke and Saarstahl Aktiengesellschaft and produces pig iron for both shareholders. As part of the green transformation, raw materials such as sponge iron (DRI) – a solid, porous product obtained from iron ore pellets in a shaft furnace without a melting process by adding reducing gases – and scrap are added for lower-CO₂ steel production.
Funding from the Environmental Innovation Programme
The Federal Ministry for the Environment is supporting the project with 2.8 million euros from the Environmental Innovation Programme. Funding is provided for the first large-scale application of the plant, which goes beyond the current state of the art and has a demonstration character. The project thus contributes to resource conservation and to the decarbonisation of the steel industry.
