SMS group partners with Synhelion for pioneering industrial plant with state-of-the-art solar technology

• SMS group enters into a strategic partnership with Synhelion to support their sun-to-liquid process

• Innovative solar technology uses the power of concentrated sunlight and enables the production of a climate-friendly alternative to fossil fuels

• Great potential to accelerate the decarbonization of the metal world

Today the transport sector has the largest share of global greenhouse gas emissions at around 25 percent. Along with other energy-intensive industries, including the metalworking industry, it is facing increasingly stringent decarbonization targets to become more climate-friendly and reduce the use of non-renewable resources.

As part of its commitment to lowering CO2 emissions with the aim of becoming CO2-neutral, SMS Concast, a company of the SMS group based in Zurich, has now entered into a strategic partnership with the Swiss company Synhelion and has invested a significant amount in the financing of their state-of-the-art solar technology. The investments of the SMS group and other partners enable Synhelion to build and operate the world's first industrial production plant for solar fuels. The facility in Jülich will cover the entire process on an industrial scale, from the concentration of sunlight to the production of the synthetic liquid fuel. It will enable Synhelion to produce solar fuels at an unprecedentedly low price that is competitive with fossil fuels, making a meaningful collective contribution to ending the climate crisis.

This is especially true in sectors known to be difficult to electrify, such as aviation. In addition, long-distance transports such as freight or shipping require extremely high energy densities that current battery technology cannot achieve. Liquid synthetic fuels, such as Synhelion is supposed to produce, can achieve these densities and are therefore an ideal source of energy.

While the focus is initially on transportation, the process also includes solar technologies that can be transferred to other applications. In the metal-producing industry, the regenerative solar process heat generated, which can reach unprecedented temperatures of over 1,500 degrees Celsius, can be used, for example, for energy-intensive processes in steel production.

Sun-to-liquid technology and "Solar Steel"

Synhelion uses the heat of the sun to convert CO2 into synthetic fuels, so-called solar fuels. The solar radiation is reflected by the mirror field, bundled onto the receiver and converted into high-temperature process heat. The generated heat is fed to the thermochemical reactor, which converts CO2 and H2O into syngas, a mixture of H2 and CO. The syngas is then processed into fuels such as gasoline, diesel or kerosene using standard gas-to-liquids technology. Excess heat is stored in the thermal energy storage (TES) to enable continuous 24/7 operation (https://synhelion.com/technology).

“We immediately recognized the potential of this innovative process from the ETH spin-off Synhelion. In addition to solar fuel, the technology offers many application possibilities in the steel industry, both for the SMS group and for our customers, to promote the green transition in the metal-producing industry and to create a climate-neutral and sustainable metal industry. The SMS Concast team is looking forward to a fruitful partnership with an intensive exchange of knowledge, "said Dr. Stephan Feldhaus, CEO of SMS Concast.

On the way to net zero emissions

Philipp Furler, CEO and founder of Synhelion, comments: ‟SMS group will support us with their extensive know-how in plant design and operation as well as in environmental technology. Together we will accelerate the commercialization of our unique, proven technology worldwide and integrate our solutions, such as thermal energy storage, for further applications in the metal industry. "

Tim Ovelgönne, Corporate Development at SMS group and project manager for the transaction, says: “We see great potential in 'Sun-to-Liquid' technology, as it can be used in various industries. We look forward to a remarkably promising partnership with the Synhelion team. This investment is an important step in the SMS group's decarbonization strategy. "

About Synhelion

Synhelion is a global pioneer in the field of sustainable solar fuels. The clean energy company emerged from the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (ETH Zurich) in 2016 to decarbonise traffic. Solar fuels can replace all types of fossil fuels as they are economically viable and fully compatible with existing global infrastructure. Synhelion's unique technology converts concentrated solar heat into the hottest process heat available on the market and enables an unprecedented number of industrial processes such as fuel and cement making with solar heat to advance. The company already works with international partners such as Lufthansa Group, Wood, Eni, CEMEX and Zurich Airport. More information is available at: (www.synhelion.com).

Via SMS Concast

SMS Concast, a company of the SMS group, is the leading partner for continuous casting technology for the manufacture of long products in steel production. The company was founded in 1954 by Irving Rossi to build continuous casting machines and is still headquartered in Switzerland today. SMS Concast supports manufacturers from engineering (construction and order processing) to delivery and commissioning of the systems. Together with the partner companies of the SMS group, SMS Concast builds complete steel and rolling mills in search of ever more sustainable solutions. Further information can be found at: (www.sms-concast.ch).

Disclaimer of liability

SMS Group GmbH published this content on November 02, 2021 and is solely responsible for the information contained therein. Distributed by public, unedited and unchanged, on November 02, 2021 16:39:08 UTC.

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