Energy & Sustainability Client Feature: Boston Metal

This month, we are thrilled to feature Boston Metal, a company focused on developing an industrial-scale process to produce low-cost steel without carbon emissions. Boston Metal’s technology eliminates the need for coal in the steel production process, using only electricity.

Established in 2012, Boston Metal is leading the way in metals production innovation with its Molten Oxide Electrolysis (MOE) process as a method to produce emissions-free steel. MOE uses electricity to separate the constituents of iron ore into oxygen and liquid metal in the presence of an inert anode. This enables low-cost production of modular, emissions-free, high-volume steel and ferroalloys. MOE provides an alternative to the blast furnace and direct reduction processes, including hydrogen-based options.

In recent months, the company has won a number of accolades, including being named a 2020 BNEF Pioneer by Bloomberg NEF (BNEF) and a Technology Pioneer of 2020 by the World Economic Forum (WEF). Boston Metal’s title as a BNEF Pioneer indicates that it is one of ten game-changing companies from around the world in the energy, transportation, and sustainability sectors. Pioneers are selected after a competitive process in which committee members evaluate a company’s innovation, momentum, and potential scale. Similarly, Boston Metal’s award from the WEF recognizes that it is an up-and-coming growth-stage company that is involved in the design, development, and deployment of new technologies, and is poised to have a significant global impact on business and society. The company’s selection as a Technology Pioneer enables CEO Tadeu Carneiro to contribute to WEF initiatives over the next two years. Carneiro will work with public and private sector leaders to identify and analyze rising global issues.

Additionally, on May 1, Boston Metal announced a partnership with CBMM to trial Boston Metal’s MOE technology for the production of Niobium products. CBMM is a leader in the production and commercialization of Niobium technology with a global reach in over 50 countries. The two companies’ strategic partnership allows for the deployment of MOE technology at CBMM’s production plant in Araxá, Brazil. The first commissioning is expected to take place later this year.

In response to the collaboration between Boston Metal and CBMM, CEO Tadeau Carneiro commented, “It is a great honor to partner with such a world-class organization as CBMM. The MOE technology that is being developed by the team at Boston Metal promises a new era in metallurgy and in CBMM we found a partner that shares our fundamental commitment to technology leadership.”

On top of Boston Metal’s recent awards and partnership, the company is also in the middle of a Series B financing. To date, Boston Metal has raised $30 million from investors, including Breakthrough Energy Ventures, OGCI Climate Investments, Prelude Ventures, and The Engine. The investors, all that have strict energy- and technology-focused funding criteria, are a tribute to Boston Metal’s ability to innovate and potential to grow in the coming years.

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