Sustainable iron startup GravitHy announced that it has raised €60 million (USD$64.7 million), with proceeds aimed at supporting its plans to produce low-carbon iron to help decarbonize the steel industry.

Steelmaking is one of the biggest emitters of CO2 globally, and one of the more challenging sectors to abate, with total greenhouse gas emissions (GHG) from the sector accounting for 7% – 9% of direct emissions from the global use of fossil fuels. The use of green hydrogen hydrogen to fuel the production process is seen as one of the key potential solutions to help decarbonize the sector.

Established in 2022 at the initiative of European net zero-focused investment initiative InnoEnergy, Marseille-based GravitHy aims to address the growing market for green steel through the elimination of CO2 emissions in the production of iron, responsible for 80% of emissions in steel production. GravitHy’s process uses renewable and low-carbon hydrogen to produce Direct Reduced Iron (DRI) or Hot-Briquetted Iron (HBI) to supply to steelmakers.

The new capital will be used to finance GravitHy’s action plan, which includes the construction of a new plant in southern France, scheduled to start commercial production in 2029. The new plant will produce 2 million tons of DRI and HBI annually, reducing emissions by as much as 90% compared to current methods.

The new plant will employ an electrolyzer producing the green and low carbon hydrogen with capacity of approximately 750 MW, making it one of the largest in the world. GravitHy said that it has signed a letter of intent with EDF for a Nuclear Production Allocation Contract (CAPN) to supply part of the electricity required for the plant.

The company added that it is positioned to propose a faster, capex-light solution for steelmakers to produce green steel without having to invest heavily in the full hydrogen-DRI value chain at their existing sites.

GravitHy CEO José Noldin said:

“We are thrilled by the confidence our diverse investors have shown in GravitHy. Collaboration is key to disrupting the steel value chain, and we are proud to welcome these incredible partners who share our vision, values, and development goals. Their support accelerates our flagship project in Fos-sur-Mer, creating jobs, driving technological progress, and setting a blueprint for a resilient, decarbonized, and sovereign European steel industry.”

A French government program for startup funding, as well as investors including Rio Tinto, Ecolab, Japan Hydrogen Fund (a fund serviced by Advantage Partners), Marcegaglia, and Siemens Financial Services participated in the round. Existing shareholders Engie New Ventures and InnoEnergy also added investments.

Simon Farry, Head of Steel Decarbonization at Rio Tinto, said:

“Supporting the industry to accelerate the proliferation of low-carbon iron and steelmaking is core to our decarbonization strategy. Rio Tinto will be supplying high-grade iron ore to GravitHy and managing the sales of the low-carbon HBI that they produce. This investment, as a member of the consortium of investors covering GravitHy’s entire value chain, is a logical next step in our support of the project.”