Sweden reduced steel production by 3.3% y/y in 2023

Swedish steelmakers reduced steel production by 3.3% in 2023 compared to 2022, to 4.3 million tons. Thus, the country ranked 36th in the global ranking of steel producing countries WorldSteel, according to the association’s report.

Sweden has 6 operating steel mills, including:

• SSABOxelösund – (capacity: steel – 1.5 million t/year, pig iron – 1.55 million t/year);
• Ovako Smedjebacken – (steel – 1.01 million tons/year);
• Outokumpu Avesta – (steel – 0.5 million tons/year);
• Ovako Hofors – (steel – 0.5 million tons/year);
• HYBRIT – (steel – 1 million t/year; pig iron – 1.3 million t/year);
• SSAB Luleå – (steel – 2.3 million t/year; pig iron 2.55 million t/year).

Thus, the country’s total steel capacity is estimated at about 6.8 million tons per year. At the same time, the country announced the construction of 6.7 million tons per year of DRI and EAF steel production facilities to replace blast furnaces.

In September 2023, H2 Green Steel raised €1.5 billion in equity capital from a group of investors to finance the construction of a flagship green steel plant in Sweden and Europe’s first large-scale electrolyzer. The Buden plant is expected to start production in late 2025 with an initial total capacity of 2.5 million tons of steel per year. HYBRIT (2.7 million tons per year) and SSAB (1.5 million tons per year) will also switch to green facilities.

As GMK Center reported earlier, in 2022, Sweden reduced steel production by 6% compared to 2021, to 4.4 million tons. At the same time, in 2021, Swedish steelmakers increased production by 6.1% y/y – to 4.7 million tons.

In general, steel production in the EU countries in 2023 decreased by 7.4% compared to 2022, to 126.3 million tons.