Ecocem and TATA Steel will collaborate to valorise steel slag

Photo: Ecocem production facility (Source: Ecocem Global)

Ecocem, a pioneer in low-carbon cements with 25 years of experience, and Tata Steel IJmuiden in the Netherlands have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to advance the use of Basic Oxygen Furnace (BOF) and Electric Arc Furnace (EAF) steel slags as next-generation materials in low-carbon cement as Supplementary Cementitious Material (SCM). The MoU aims to reduce CO2 emissions from cement by lowering clinker use, advancing circularity across steel and cement value chains, and expanding access to low-carbon concrete solutions across Europe.

The MoU builds on an existing joint research program and sets out a shared intention to explore new technical, commercial, and regulatory pathways for the valorisation of these steelmaking slags produced at Tata Steel IJmuiden. Tata Steel in the Netherlands is part of the Tata Steel Group with other production sites in Europe and worldwide. By replacing clinker with steel slag, the cement industry can significantly cut CO2 emissions while giving industrial by-products a more valuable and circular use. Ecocem operates from two plants in France, as well as sites in the Netherlands and Ireland, producing over two million tonnes of low-carbon cement each year.

Pieter Roelofsen, Director Strategy, M&A and Partnerships at Tata Steel Nederland said: “This Memorandum of Understanding reflects a shared ambition to support the transition to more sustainable construction materials and by exploring innovative applications of steel slag, a condition for the successful delivery of our Green Steel Project, we aim to contribute to circular value chains while supporting the decarbonization of both the steel and cement industries.”

Olivier Guise, Executive Director of Strategy, Technology and Business Development at Ecocem, added: “This type of collaboration has the potential to be transformative for the global cement industry. Together, we are investigating how two underutilised by-products from steel manufacturing could become next-generation alternative cementitious materials, helping reduce emissions while creating value from materials that would otherwise go unused. This is exactly the kind of cross-industry innovation needed to accelerate the transition to a circular, low-carbon economy and reshape the future of sustainable construction.”

https://www.ecocemglobal.com/tata-steel-ijmuiden-and-ecocem-sign-mou/