Netherlands: India-based Tata Steel has announced a planned total investment of Euro300m in environmental upgrades to its IJmuiden, Noord Holland plant. The upgrades include a Euro150m nitrous oxides control (DeNO_x) plant at its pellet plant and a Euro50m odour, particulate emissions reduction modernisation of a coke and gas plant and projects to dust from converter slag processing. The steel producer says that these measures, called Roadmap+ will help the foundry to ‘exceed environmental laws.’

European regional chief executive officer (CEO) Henrik Adam said, "Tata Steel is taking additional action to build on its Roadmap 2030 plan with the announcement today of Roadmap+, which will enhance the environment in and around the IJmuiden plant. We are absolutely committed to sustainability as a strategic priority across the company, of which these measures are the latest example.”

Slovenia: Steel producer SIJ Acroni has partnered with construction company Batt Crew, non-governmental organisation (NGO) Dejmo, the Olympic Committee of Slovenia Association of Sports Federations (NOCSLO) and the Slovenian Steel Group for a “one-of-a-kind” project to construct five Olympic standard pump tracks – jump circuits for BMX bikes – from steel slag.

The company will supply 10,000t of black slag in various grain sizes to five sites across the country, and all of the tracks are scheduled for completion in 2022. The partners share “one common vision: to have a pump track in every municipality,” according to the producer. It said that the project “follows the principles of circular economy, because it creatively uses slag, a by-product of steel production, to build pump tracks. It enables the partners in the project of sports infrastructure for all to contribute towards reducing the consumption of natural resources.”

SIJ Group senior vice-president Tibor Šimonka said, “The 20 outdoor gyms, which were development and built by the efforts of our colleagues, will soon be joined by five slag pump tracks constructed by us and our partners, where members of the local communities all across Slovenia will be able to test their minds of steel."

UK: DB Group has supplied its Cemfree concrete product to a site in Birmingham, West Midlands for use by the Environment Agency in a flood defence project. It says that the agency will use the concrete “for kerb bedding and backing over several kilometres in conjunction with various recycled products in an effort to reduce the projects’ carbon footprint.” Cemfree is a low carbon concrete made using ground blast furnace slag (GGBS) and pulverised fly ash.

Bahrain: Angles and beams producer SULB Company has renewed its steel mill services contract with US-based Harsco Environmental. The supplier has held the contract since 2012.

Harsco Environmental vice president and chief operating officer (COO) Russ Mitchell said, “We are pleased to continue working with SULB. It is an innovative customer which has leveraged our sustainable solutions to maximise environmental benefit and return valuable raw material into production. The multiple renewals speak to the mutual trust and understanding which has been forged with SULB over a long-term and meaningful working relationship.”