In Kemi, Finland, two miles east of Haparanda, there is the underground mine that supplies the ferrochrome smelter in Torneå with chromium.
Outokumpu has recently invested around three billion kroner in lowering the mine from 500 meters to 1,000 meters deep.
First carbon dioxide-neutral mine
Today, the company states that the mine will become the first carbon dioxide-neutral mine in the world by 2025. This is primarily by replacing regular diesel with renewable diesel.
Through Kemigruvan, Outokumpu considers itself to have taken the leading role in the steel industry’s race in the transition.
But the mining and steel companies use different concepts, which means that it can be difficult to determine who is actually leading the race.
Not completely fossil-free
Outokumpu uses the term carbon dioxide neutral, which means that you need to compensate for parts of the production that cannot be made fossil-free.
– Claiming that you are completely fossil-free is a rather clever distinction. But we will do everything in our power to get as low as possible, says Niklas Wass, division manager at Outokumpu.
This is how the boss sees the race
LKAB is using the term fossil-free for its transition in, for example, Malmbergsgruvan, where the switch to electric trucks and loaders must be fully implemented by 2045.
According to LKAB, 70 percent of the entire operation in Malmberget is already fossil-free, including a pellet plant that runs on bio-oil.
In the clip, Niklas Wass tells more about how he sees the race.