Posted on 25 Dec 2025
The upgrade of ArcelorMittal steelworks at Aviles in northern Spain is advancing. The environmental commission of the Principality of Asturias (CAMA) approved the environmental impact statement for the construction of a new electric arc furnace (EAF), Kallanish notes.
The Helena-EAF Avilés project is still awaiting the final consent of ArcelorMittal's board.
Works will be carried out inside the steelworks and involve replacing one of the basic oxygen furnace (BOF) converters with an EAF with a capacity of 2.5 million tonnes/year of crude steel production. This will enable the mill to operate in hybrid mode, combining the traditional blast furnace route with the new electric one.
“The resulting facility will have one BOF converter in operation and one on standby, and an EAF, both based on pig iron and scrap use, and in the case of the EAF, also by direct reduced iron (DRI),” states the project documentation. “This flexibility will allow the mix of raw materials to be adapted according to the grades of steel to be produced, with the possibility of reaching up to 100% scrap in the load mix.”
The electric route will include an additional ladle furnace, which will strengthen the plant's capacity to produce high-quality flat steel with a lower carbon footprint. The project will be completed with a new electrical substation.
Source:Kallanish
