U. S. Steel and CarbonFree Ink MoU to Capture CO2 Emissions at One of the Largest Integrated Steel Mills in North America

United States Steel Corporation and CarbonFree Chemicals Holdings, LLC  have signed a non-binding Memorandum of Understanding to jointly pursue the capture of CO₂ emissions generated from U. S. Steel’s Gary Works manufacturing plant using CarbonFree’s SkyCycle technology. If a definitive agreement is reached, the project is expected to capture and mineralize up to 50,000 metric tons of CO₂ per year, the equivalent to carbon emissions from nearly 11,000 passenger cars.

CarbonFree’s patented SkyCycle technology captures carbon emissions from hard-to-abate industrial sources before entering the atmosphere, converts the CO₂ into the specialty chemical precipitated calcium carbonate (PCC), and produces hydrochloric acid (HCl) as a co-product.

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“As we aim to widely introduce and scale our technology to industrial facilities across the globe, we are thrilled for the possibility of bringing our SkyCycle technology’s carbon capture capabilities to U. S. Steel’s Gary Works plant, one of the largest integrated steel mills in North America,” said Martin Keighley, CEO of CarbonFree. “We are committed to working closely with U. S. Steel to achieve their sustainability goals and to further our mission of helping to enable the world’s transition to net zero carbon emissions.”

Located in Gary, Indiana, U. S. Steel’s Gary Works has annual production capability of 7.5 million net tons of raw steel per year. The MoU establishes a framework for discussions regarding the formation of a commercial venture. The decision between CarbonFree and U. S. Steel to enter into a definitive agreement is expected to be made prior to the end of 2023, and if a final agreement is executed, the parties are targeting 2025 for commencement of operations. The parties may also consider collaborating on more carbon capture, utilization and storage projects in the future.

“We are eager to enter the next phase of discussions with CarbonFree to explore the possibility of meaningful CO₂ emission reductions in our operations in a capital efficient manner,” said Richard L. Fruehauf, SVP – Chief Strategy & Sustainability Officer at U. S. Steel. “Working with CarbonFree could be a meaningful step in our efforts to decarbonize the Gary Works plant while developing technology and knowhow that we could apply to other facilities within our footprint.

SOURCE: Businesswire