Meranti Green Steel secures full offtake for planned green iron project in Oman
Source：hydrogeninsight
Singapore-headquartered Meranti Green Steel has announced that it has secured offtake for the full output of the first phase of its proposed hot briquetted iron (HBI) plant in Oman, which would use a blend of natural gas and green hydrogen to process iron ore into HBI.
One million tonnes a year would go to Thyssenkrupp Materials Trading in Germany, Belgium and the Netherlands, with another 250,000 tonnes allocated to Interfer in Italy and Austria.
The remaining 1.25 million tonnes would be split between commodities trader Glencore and Meranti’s own planned electric-arc-furnace-based steelworks in Rayong, Thailand, although the exact amount allocated to each has not been detailed.
HBI can be processed into steel via electric arc furnaces, with Meranti betting that shipping it directly will be cheaper than trying to import raw materials such as natural gas, renewable ammonia (to be cracked into hydrogen) and iron ore for direct iron reduction within Europe.
Meranti aims to take a final investment decision on the Omani project by the middle of this year, with the plant likely to start operations in 2029.
Last month, the firm signed a memorandum of understanding for green hydrogen supply from Amnah Energy, one of the initial winners of the Omani government’s Hydrom auctions for blocks of land to develop green hydrogen projects.
Meranti had previously told Hydrogen Insight that it would likely start off with a 15% green hydrogen blend in natural gas for direct iron reduction, before reaching 85% H2 in the 2040s, depending on cost constraints and CO2 prices around the world.