BURNS HARBOR – ArcelorMittal USA, along with top companies and organizations across the country, continues to lead the way toward a more energy efficient future through participation in ENERGY STAR.
In recognition of its achievements in energy efficiency, ArcelorMittal USA, which has local facilities in East Chicago and Burns Harbor, earned the 2013 ENERGY STAR Award for Sustained Excellence, marking the company's sixth consecutive ENERGY STAR award. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the U.S. Department of Energy give this distinction to companies that demonstrate continuous growth, energy management accomplishments and a commitment to energy efficiency.
Since 2006, ArcelorMittal USA has reduced energy costs by more than $165 million through focused improvements in energy management. In 2012 alone, ArcelorMittal achieved a 1.87 percent reduction in energy intensity for U.S. operations compared to 2011, which is the equivalent of powering 141,648 homes for a year.
At Indiana Harbor, the 504 Boiler Project recovers and reuses energy by transferring blast furnace gas from the blast furnace to a newly constructed boiler to cogenerate steam and electricity. The 504 Boiler was brought on-line on Aug. 11, 2012, with an expected savings of $19.8 million per year.
Another local achievement, the Hot Dip Cooling Tower VFD Project at ArcelorMittal Burns Harbor reduced electricity usage by running cooling tower pumps and fan motors at a reduced rate. This was achieved by installing variable frequency drives to control five motors and running the pumps at 85 percent of capacity resulting in $200,000 electricity and $200,000 maintenance savings per year. Fifty percent of the project was funded by a local utility grant.
