A consortium, led by the Dutch Research Institution TNO, has received an exceptional grant of € 21 million from the European Commission under the Horizon 2020 Framework Program, called the INITIATE Project (Innovative Industrial Transformation of the steel and chemical industries of Europe), to investigate and develop the potential of industrial symbiosis to convert residual steel gas emissions into resources for urea production.
Stamicarbon B.V., MET Development S.p.A and NextChem S.p.A. – all subsidiaries of Maire Tecnimont Group – participate in this consortium of steel, chemical and energy transition companies, research institutions, universities and industrial partners active in both the steel and fertilizer industry.

The INITIATE project will demonstrate a novel symbiotic and circular process that transforms residual steel gases into resources for urea production. The core of this process is a modular carbon-capture utilization-and-storage (CCUS) technology, integrating the flexible conditioning of time dependent and carbon-rich steel gases with the synthesis of ammonia.

Throughout the project, these innovative technologies and their optimal integrated operations will be proven in real industrial settings at the facilities of Swerim in Luleå, Sweden, advancing to technology readiness level. The successful demonstration will enable to move forward with the construction of a First-of-a-kind plant at the scale of 150 t(Urea)/d, within a timeframe of 5 years.