Ovako develops and manufactures steel for the demanding automotive and engineering industries, for example. Fortum supplies Ovako with scrap metal that meets quality standards. This cooperation has provided Ovako with more options for the availability of recycled steel.
Cooperation based on reliable deliveries and sorting
Ovako is a subsidiary of Sanyo Special Steel and part of the Japanese Nippon Steel Group. Nippon Steel is one of the world’s largest steel companies. Leading manufacturers in the ball bearing, vehicle and engineering industries use high-quality steel based on Ovako’s recycled scrap metal for transmission and transformer equipment, axles, gears, springs, bearings, bolts and mining tools, for example.
A reliable and steady supply of raw materials is important for Ovako. The quality and suitability of the recycled metal supplied by Fortum are based on established quality standards in Finland. Fortum mainly supplies Ovako with what are known as “general classes” and periodically also with other steel grades.
“The more thoroughly sorted and analysed materials Fortum delivers, the more durable and higher-quality steel Ovako is able to manufacture,” says Jukkapekka Sutela, Commercial Director at Fortum.
“A supplier that can provide us with high-quality material consistently is valuable for us. Scrap metal is available, but there are challenges with high-quality sorted material,” says Pekka Karvonen, Purchasing Manager at Ovako.
Steel with a carbon footprint 80% lower than the average
Two billion tonnes of steel are produced globally each year, a third of which is made from recycled scrap metal. In Finland, metal is sorted and recycled efficiently. However, not all scrap iron can be used to produce high-quality recycled steel. In 2021, Ovako Imatra delivered a total of 190,000 tonnes of various steel end-products to its customers around the world.
Ovako’s production process is based on recycled scrap metal and fossil-free electricity production. Consequently, the carbon footprint of Ovako’s steel products is 80% lower than the global average. Its steel products are also slag-free and durable, because impurities are minimised during the production process.
“Part of the carbon footprint of a steel product comes from its raw material. Fortum’s efficient recycling process meets the requirements of responsible recycling and minimises environmental impacts,” Sutela explains.
The steel produced by Ovako has the world’s lowest carbon dioxide emissions per tonne of steel produced. Since the beginning of 2022, Ovako’s steel production has been completely carbon-neutral.
