Natalia Chi
BOSTON–(COMMERCIAL THREAD)–Boston Metal, a company developing technology to fully decarbonise steel production, today announced the first close of a $120 million Series C fundraiser led by multinational steel company ArcelorMittal SA (NYSE: MT ). Microsoft’s Climate Innovation Fund and SiteGround Capital have also joined as new investors in this round, along with current investors.
ArcelorMittal’s main investment has been through its XCarb® Innovation Fund. Commenting, Aditya Mittal, CEO of ArcelorMittal, said: “At Boston Metal, we are investing in a team that has made impressive progress in a relatively short period of time, developing a technology that has exciting potential to revolutionize steelmaking. . In our extensive discussions with them, we have been impressed by their passion and vision for contributing to the decarbonisation of steelmaking. They are an exciting and welcome addition to the XCarb® Innovation Fund portfolio.”
Boston Metal’s patented Molten Oxide Electrolysis (MOE) process is commercialized to produce both green steel and high-value metals, such as tin and niobium. Series C funds will expand green steel production at the company’s pilot plant outside of Boston and support site selection and preliminary design of its first green steel plant. The new assets will also support the construction and commissioning of a high-value metals manufacturing facility at the company’s Brazilian subsidiary, Boston Metal do Brasil.
“Microsoft’s Climate Innovation Fund was created to accelerate the development and deployment of technology in areas that will have the most significant impact on climate. The technology Boston Metal is developing has the potential to deliver affordable green steel at scale, helping drive cross-industry decarbonization, which is increasingly critical for companies with carbon reduction goals, such as Microsoft,” said Brandon Middaugh, director, Microsoft Climate Innovation Finance.
With the closure, Irina Gorbounova of ArcelorMittal and Rick Cutright of current investor OGCI Climate Investments joined the company’s board. “Boston Metal has built an incredible team that has made significant progress in advancing its disruptive technology since we first invested in its Series A,” said Rick Cutright, director of technology at OGCI Climate Investments. “We are very excited to continue with this investment and be a part of this next major phase of the company’s growth as it builds capabilities that will revolutionize the steel industry and support a net-zero economy.”
Steel is one of the most important materials to our society with nearly 2 billion tonnes produced each year, yet the industry relies on a carbon-intensive manufacturing process that contributes nearly 10% to global emissions of carbon. Major steel consumers in the automotive, construction, and technology industries are demanding net-zero carbon steel solutions, and the steel industry is committed to achieving net zero by 2050. Boston Metal is commercializing carbon-neutral technology that is set to achieve scale of billions of tons at the competitive production costs needed to revolutionize the steel industry. The company’s MOE platform uses renewable electricity to convert all types of iron ore into steel through an energy-efficient one-step process. MOE technology does not release carbon dioxide or other harmful by-products and there is no need for process water, hazardous chemicals or precious metal catalysts.
“Our technology is designed to decarbonise large-scale steel production. We believe we have the experienced team, strong financial backing and innovative technology needed to revolutionize the industry. ArcelorMittal’s support further strengthens our ability to lead the green steel revolution,” said Tadeu Carneiro, president and CEO of Boston Metal.
Complementary to the company’s work in the steel sector, Boston Metal do Brasil focuses on using MOE to improve the efficiency, sustainability and profitability of metal production. MOE selectively extracts precious metals from low concentration complex materials that are currently considered waste. This allows miners to reduce the financial and environmental liabilities of the slag by exploiting this natural by-product of metal production to create new revenue streams. First earnings from Boston Metal do Brasil are expected in 2023.
About Boston Metal
Boston Metal is a global metals technology solutions company that is commercializing molten oxide electrolysis (MOE), a proprietary platform for producing metals by tonnage powered by electricity. MOE is expected to provide the metals industry with a more efficient, lower cost, and greener solution for producing steel and other metals from a wide variety of raw materials and iron ore grades. Backed by leading investors and led by a team of world-class metals industry veterans and scientists, Boston Metal’s technology is designed for a straightforward, scalable approach to decarbonizing steelmaking. The company is headquartered in Woburn, Massachusetts with a wholly owned subsidiary in Brazil. To learn more about Boston Metal, visit www.bostonmetal.com.
