The heater is based on Prothal® DH technology and will be the first electric process gas heater for DRI that Kanthal supplies for commercial use. Delivery is planned for the beginning of 2026.
By installing a 1-megawatt size electric process gas heater, supplied by Kanthal and Danieli, Emsteel will take another step towards making the Energiron DRI plant plant even more environmentally friendly.
When fully scaled up, this technology has the potential to completely remove the CO2 emissions from the heating process while enhancing energy efficiency.
“This pilot is an important step in the development and industrialization of full-scale electric process gas heaters for DRI and other ironmaking applications. We are proud to see that the technology is now being implemented in an end-user production setting, which will enable further opportunities for future sales and commercialization,” said Robert Stål, president of the Kanthal division.
The heating solution is being developed for hydrogen, natural gas, and combinations, thereby enabling retrofitting of existing DRI plants. By installing this technology in Energiron hydrogen-ready DRI plants, fully emission-free DRI production can be achieved. Even for natural gas based DRI plants, a more than 30% reduction of CO2 emissions will be achieved when electrifying the heating system.
