ArcelorMittal and Schneider Electric, a leader in the digital transformation of energy management and automation, want to work more closely together. As part of the cooperation, ArcelorMittal will supply Schneider Electric with XCarb® steels in the future. Schneider Electric uses recycled steel made from renewable energies to produce control cabinets and housings.
XCarb® is manufactured at ArcelorMittal’s Sestao site in Spain using a very high proportion of recycled steel in an electric arc furnace powered by 100 percent renewable electricity. The result is CO₂ emissions that are almost 70 percent lower than those of a comparable product manufactured without the XCarb® process.
ArcelorMittal’s recycled and regeneratively produced XCarb® steel is used by Schneider Electric to manufacture the new PanelSeT SFN enclosures . These are used to protect electrical panels in industrial automation, power distribution and electronic applications. Because these enclosures are designed for use in harsh environments, the XCarb® steel is additionally coated with Magnelis®, a metal coating that provides high corrosion protection.
The partnership between Schneider Electric and ArcelorMittal is the result of several months of technical cooperation between the ArcelorMittal Steel Service Center Europe and Schneider Electric. The main focus of the collaboration was to find the optimal steel grade and coating for the project. Earlier this year, Schneider Electric announced the opening of a new rolling mill at its Sarel factory in Alsace, France, to prepare the low-carbon steel casing parts that will be assembled at the Schneider factory in Capellades, near Barcelona, Spain. The low-carbon steel for the plants is supplied by ArcelorMittal Steel Service Center Europe from the distribution center in Reims (France).
“At Schneider Electric, sustainability is at the heart of our mission, which continually drives us to innovate and create a more sustainable future. We call this approach Electricity 4.0. This term stands for the sustainable integration of digital technologies into the electrification of processes. As part of our sustainability goals, we consciously rely on the power of strong partnerships to better achieve net zero goals,” said Rohan Kelkar, Executive Vice President of the Power Products Division at Schneider Electric.
As part of its validation by the “Science-based Targets” initiative With its “Net Zero” commitments , Schneider Electric plans to achieve an absolute CO2 reduction of 25 percent across its entire value chain by 2030. With the Schneider Sustainability Impact 2021-2025 sustainability program , the company has also set the goal of increasing the amount of environmentally friendly materials used in its products – including low-carbon steel – to 50 percent. Schneider Electric is also a member of the Responsible Steel Initiative for responsibly sourced and produced steel.
ArcelorMittal Europe has set itself the goal of reducing CO2 emissions by 35 percent by 2030 and becoming climate neutral by 2050.