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Vestas May Have Just Created The World’s Cleanest Energy Source

Simple changes can yield massive results.

Will Lockett

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Predict

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3 min read

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1 day ago

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Wind power is fantastic. It’s one of the lowest carbon forms of energy we have, even lower than solar, and is also one of the cheapest forms of energy we have. Offshore wind power is also the only form of energy that significantly boosts biodiversity, as they act as artificial reefs. But Vestas thinks they can improve it. By changing one simple thing, they may have just made wind power the world’s cleanest form of energy.

Vestas has set out to solve one of the biggest problems with wind turbines. The giant towers of the turbines are mostly made of steel, which has problematic origins. You see, most steel foundries use blast furnaces powered by carbon dioxide belching coal or gas to smelt and refine steel. They also mix coke (a type of processed coal) with the raw iron ore to turn it into steel, releasing even more emissions. As such, for every kilogram of steel produced in blast furnaces, roughly 1.9 kilograms of carbon dioxide is emitted! Alternative furnace technologies exist, like electric arc furnaces and induction furnaces, which release far fewer emissions. Yet, the industry isn’t adopting them, as they cost more to build (but less to run) than blast furnaces. In fact, of the 230 steel plants planned worldwide, only 30% use electric arc or induction furnaces.

This is why the steel used to build wind turbines accounts for roughly 50% of their lifetime emissions!

Vestas’s rather obvious solution is to use low-emission steel from ArcelorMittal steel mill. This steel isn’t derived from ore but rather recycled scrap steel, which requires far less energy to refine. It’s also refined in electric arc furnaces powered by 100% renewable wind power. As such, this is about as eco-friendly as steel gets. What’s more, ArcelorMittal’s low-emission steel gets an Environmental Product Declaration (EPD), certified by an independent party, detailing the complete environmental footprint of the product and allowing easier comparison between products.

According to Vestas, this steel has 66% lower emissions by weight than their regular supplier. As such, it can reduce the lifetime emissions of onshore wind turbines by 52%, as it can be used for the entire tower…