GravitHy raises €60 million for green steel project

GravitHy, an up-and-coming low-carbon iron producer, has announced that it has raised €60 million in investment, including public funding from France’s Première Usine program. New global investors joined the round: Ecolab, Japan Hydrogen Fund, Marcegaglia, Rio Tinto, Siemens Financial Services, as well as existing shareholders Engie New Ventures and InnoEnergy. This is stated in the company’s press release.

The funds will allow GravitHy to complete the project development by 2026 and make a final investment decision. In addition, the company continues to attract new investors to ensure the implementation of the construction and commercial phases.

The future plant, which will be located in the Fos-sur-Mer industrial zone (France), will start commercial production in 2029. It is expected to create up to 500 jobs, and the total investment in the project will amount to €2.2 billion. The plant will produce 2 million tons of direct reduced iron (DRI) and hot briquetted iron (HBI) annually.

“We are pleased with the trust of our investors. Cooperation is a key factor in the transformation of the steel industry, and we are proud to have the support of such powerful partners,” said GravitHy CEO Jose Noldin.

An important component of the project is the use of a 750 MW electrolyzer to produce green hydrogen, which will reduce CO2 emissions by up to 90%. To provide electricity, GravitHy has signed a nuclear power supply agreement with EDF and received confirmation of grid connection.

“GravitHy is a critical player in the decarbonization of industry. Already today, we see significant interest from European steel producers looking for fast and efficient ways to transition to green steel,” said Diego Pavia, CEO of InnoEnergy.

Other key investors include Rio Tinto, which will supply raw materials to GravitHy and sell low-carbon iron. Siemens Financial Services and Marcegaglia noted the strategic importance of the project for the development of the steel industry in Europe.

GravitHy was founded in 2022 to accelerate the decarbonization of the steel industry. The new financing strengthens the company’s position as one of the leaders in the European green steel market.

As GMK Center reported earlier, Ukraine has 5 billion tons of magnetite ore, the main raw material for direct reduced iron (DRI) production, which is growing strongly in Europe. Thus, it can be argued that Ukraine is in the best position to become a major supplier of raw materials for DRI to the EU.

Projects such as H2 Green Steel (Stegra), GravitHy, and BlastrGreenSteel could create an internal market for hot briquetted iron in the EU.