Ecolant to launch Russia's first large-scale DRI-EAF steel plant in Q4 2026
2026-07-10 10:30:22 [Print]
Russia-based Ecolant has announced that its green steel project, currently under construction in Vyksa, Nizhny Novgorod region, is scheduled to commence operations in the fourth quarter of 2026.
According to the company, the project will become the first steel plant in Russia to deploy direct reduced iron (DRI) technology combined with electric arc furnace (EAF) steelmaking on a commercial scale. The facility will produce steel from DRI pellets using natural gas, with carbon dioxide and sulfur oxide emissions expected to be nearly three times lower than those from conventional blast furnace–basic oxygen furnace production.
The plant will have an annual steelmaking capacity of 1.8 million metric tons and will produce round billets (blooms) and slabs. Most of the semi-finished products will be used to manufacture high-grade steel for the oil and gas, transport, and machinery sectors.
The project is expected to boost domestic consumption by approximately 1 billion cubic meters of natural gas and 3.5 million metric tons of iron ore pellets annually.
According to the company, the project will become the first steel plant in Russia to deploy direct reduced iron (DRI) technology combined with electric arc furnace (EAF) steelmaking on a commercial scale. The facility will produce steel from DRI pellets using natural gas, with carbon dioxide and sulfur oxide emissions expected to be nearly three times lower than those from conventional blast furnace–basic oxygen furnace production.
The plant will have an annual steelmaking capacity of 1.8 million metric tons and will produce round billets (blooms) and slabs. Most of the semi-finished products will be used to manufacture high-grade steel for the oil and gas, transport, and machinery sectors.
The project is expected to boost domestic consumption by approximately 1 billion cubic meters of natural gas and 3.5 million metric tons of iron ore pellets annually.
