Rio Tinto, GravitHy team to speed the decarbonization of steelmaking in Europe

Rio Tinto (RIO) has entered into definitive agreements with GravitHy, an early-stage industrial company, to help accelerate GravitHy’s steel decarbonisation project in France. As part of this collaboration, Rio Tinto will supply high-grade direct reduction iron ore pellets from its Iron Ore Company of Canada, or IOC, operations to GravitHy’s planned operation, as well as manage the sales and marketing of ultra-low carbon Hot Briquetted Iron, or HBI, GravitHy produces. GravitHy’s proposed two million tons per year iron production facility at Fos-sur-Mer, France, is planned to be commissioned in 2028. The facility, which is located next to a deep seaport, will feature ultra-low carbon hydrogen production infrastructure, powered by existing grid-connected nuclear power, to process direct reduction pellets into HBI. This process has the potential to reduce ironmaking-related CO2 emissions by more than 90%. Steel produced with low-carbon emissions is an essential component of the net-zero energy transition. The production of iron and steel contributes around 8% of global carbon emissions and requires new technologies, redesigned processes, and new infrastructure to decarbonize.