Hybar has been honoured for its ground-breaking all-electric scrap metal recycling and low carbon steel manufacturing facility being constructed in the US, which it is financing with a "milestone" green bond.
The $330 million bond was issued on behalf of the steelmaking start-up by the Arkansas Development Finance Authority in July 2023 and became the first-ever transaction to be certified under the new steel criteria published by the Climate Bonds Initiative (CBI) in December 2022 after securing approval from Kestrel Verifiers.
The electric arc facility in Arkansas – expected to be operational by May 2025 – will be the first to have a ground-breaking direct connection to an on-site 85MW solar power installation which will generate 100% of its electricity. In addition, the facility will incorporate a series of best market practices in order to minimise the emissions from the hard-to-abate sector – these include slag foaming to reduce electricity use, advanced sensors, and continuous operation to minimise heat loss.
As a result, the finished plant – which is expected to manufacture 5% of total steel reinforcing bar demand in the US and Canada – is anticipated to generate "significantly less" emissions than the global 0.7 tonnes of CO2 equivalent per tonne of steel produced average for electric arc furnace production.
One IMPACT awards judge called the project "an industry milestone", noting its impact in an "important hard-to-abate sector".
The global steel industry generates around an average of two tonnes of CO2 equivalent per tonne of steel produced and – alongside iron production – generates as much as 10% of global greenhouse gas emissions.
