(Press-News.org) A new study from the Stockholm School of Economics finds that the competitiveness of green steel production in Romania partly hinges on hydrogen sourcing—requiring a 15 percent price premium if hydrogen is purchased externally as supposed to produced on-site. Without this premium, decarbonizing the country’s only primary steel producer could result in billions of losses.
The research, published in the Journal of Industrial Ecology, evaluates the financial viability of Liberty Steel Galați’s transition to low-carbon steelmaking using green hydrogen and electric arc furnace-based technologies. The plant, one of the EU’s top 10 most polluting steel facilities, aims to become carbon-neutral by 2030.
“Our findings show that Romanian green steel production can be competitive—if hydrogen is produced on-site and electricity prices remain stable,” says Mara Bălașa, lead author and PhD Fellow at the Stockholm School of Economics. “But if hydrogen is purchased externally, a 15 percent price premium in the market would be needed to avoid steep value losses.”
The steel industry accounts for roughly 7 percent of global CO₂ emissions and is central to achieving the EU’s 2050 climate neutrality goals. The transition of Liberty Steel Galați could significantly reduce Romania’s national carbon emissions and serve as a blueprint for green steel production in Central and Eastern Europe, a region often overlooked in climate transition research.
EUR100 per ton premium price swing
Using a novel dataset collected by the Energy Policy Group, a Bucharest-based non-profit independent think tank, the study shows that the premium required to produce green steel in Romania could swing by as much as EUR100 per ton depending on how hydrogen is sourced. If hydrogen is purchased externally, a EUR90 per ton premium would be needed for Liberty Steel Galați to avoid losing an estimated EUR3.3 billion in net value over a period of 20 years. But if produced on-site with relatively stable electricity prices, green steel could instead come with a EUR10 per ton discount, potentially making it cheaper than steel produced with today’s conventional blast furnace-based technology.
However, full on-site hydrogen production would likely triple annual electricity demand to an estimated 10.9 TWh from about 3.4 TWh today. That is equivalent to about 30 percent of the total electricity consumption by non-households in Romania in 2022. Such a jump in electricity demand could lead to spikes in electricity prices, making production costs higher. Also, the electricity would need to be sourced from fossil free energy sources to qualify as climate neutral—currently about 30 percent of Romania’s electricity is generated from fossil fuels such as natural gas and coal.
“Our results have practical implications for both industry and policymakers,” says co-author Rickard Sandberg, professor and head of the Center for Data Analytics at the Stockholm School of Economics. “For steel producers, they help inform risk assessments and future decarbonization strategies. For policymakers, they highlight the urgent need for stable electricity pricing, green energy production, hydrogen infrastructure development, and supportive policies to make low-carbon steel financially viable.”
The researchers note several limitations primarily stemming from forecasting uncertainties regarding future electricity prices, hydrogen infrastructure readiness, and policy interventions such as carbon contracts for difference (CCfDs).
The research was supported by financing from the Jan Wallander and Tom Hedelius Foundation.
Publication: “Pricing the Green Transition: An Investment Appraisal of Romanian Low-Carbon Steel,” Mara Bălașa and Rickard Sandberg, Journal of Industrial Ecology, online 17 June 2025, doi: 10.1111/jiec.70054
About the Stockholm School of Economics
The Stockholm School of Economics is rated as a top business school in the Nordic and Baltic countries and enjoys a strong international reputation. World-class research forms the foundation of our educational offering, which includes bachelor, master, PhD, MBA, and Executive Education programs. Our programs are developed in close cooperation with the business and research communities, providing graduates substantial potential to attain leading positions in companies and other organizations.
The School is accredited by EQUIS, certifying that all of its principal activities – teaching as well as research – maintain the highest international standards. The Stockholm School of Economics is also the only Swedish member institution of CEMS and PIM, which are collaborations between top business schools worldwide, contributing to the level of quality for which our school is known.
For more information about the Stockholm School of Economics, or to read all of our press releases, please visit our website.
END
According to the first-ever survey fielded to RAND’s new American Youth Panel (AYP), 49% of students in middle and high school grades reported losing interest in math about half or more of the time, and 75% of youths reported losing interest for at least some class time.
Loss of interest in math is consistent across genders and racial and ethnic groups.
In the fall of 2024, RAND asked youths in grades 5 through 12 about their math class experiences with plans to measure these math attitudes annually to track trends over time. This nationally representative report was fielded to a group of ...
The Hebrew University of Jerusalem proudly congratulates three of its esteemed researchers – Prof. Dorit Aharonov, Prof. Israel Nelken, and Prof. Tamar Ziegler – on being awarded the highly competitive European Research Council (ERC) Advanced Grants.
This prestigious recognition, part of the EU’s Horizon Europe programme, supports senior researchers in pursuing ambitious, curiosity-driven projects with the potential to make significant scientific breakthroughs. The ERC Advanced Grant competition is one of ...
Amid concerns over rising petroleum prices and resource depletion, organic compounds such as methanol are attracting attention as potential replacements. Though this bodes well in theory, the production of raw materials from methanol relies on costly chemical processes. An energy-saving, bio-based process is necessary for fully tapping into this resource.
To make this a reality, Associate Professor Ryosuke Yamada’s team at Osaka Metropolitan University’s Graduate School of Engineering has developed a Komagataella phaffii (K. phaffii) yeast strain that can efficiently produce D-lactic acid, a raw material for ...
Cellulose-based textile material can make the clothing sector more sustainable. Currently, cellulose-based textiles are mainly made from wood, but a study headed by researchers from Chalmers University of Technology points to the possibility of using agricultural waste from wheat and oat. The method is easier and requires fewer chemicals than manufacturing forest-based cellulose, and can enhance the value of waste products from agriculture.
Making clothing from water-intensive cotton has a major impact on the climate. That’s why cellulose from other raw materials has come into focus in recent years as a more resource-smart method of textile production. Up to now, the ...
Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, 17 June 2025 - In a comprehensive Genomic Press Innovators & Ideas interview, Dr. Claire J. Foldi, an Associate Professor in the Department of Physiology at Monash University, shares her journey and groundbreaking work in the field of eating disorders. Dr. Foldi's research focuses on the neurobiology of eating disorders, particularly anorexia nervosa, and explores how novel therapeutics, including psychedelics, may offer new avenues for treatment.
Early Inspirations and Career Trajectory
Dr. Foldi's fascination with human behavior and the brain's processing of experiences began during her undergraduate studies. A pivotal moment ...
Would you like living next door to a solar farm? Traditionally, it’s been thought that although people like the idea of renewable energy plants, they don’t want them close by. Now research investigating how people who live near large-scale solar projects feel about them has found that 82% of people living within an hour’s walk of current projects would support, or are neutral towards, new projects in their area.
“Most neighbors of existing large-scale solar projects either support or feel neutral about additional ...
Dr. Seunggun Yu and his team at KERI's Insulation Materials Research Center have developed a groundbreaking ‘Hybrid Supraparticle Synthesis Technology’ that can attach inorganic nanoparticles to the surface of polymer microparticles through simple mechanical collisions.
The ‘Hybrid Supraparticle Synthesis Technology’ that combines functional inorganic nanoparticles with polymer microparticles is being widely applied across various industries, including battery electrode materials, catalyst systems, pharmaceuticals and biotechnology, semiconductor packaging, and insulating ...
A simple classroom activity involving a classic childhood staple, LEGO, could improve children’s maths and spatial ability, leading researchers to demand for policymakers to shake up the school curricula and teachers’ professional development.
A new study, led by the University of Surrey, tested incorporating LEGO building into the daily teaching curriculum, leading to tangible improvements and boosting abilities for students aged six to seven.
The study, which involved 409 children from schools in Surrey and Portsmouth, demonstrated ...
Despite overall progress in bringing down low birthweight numbers across India over the past 30 years, rates remain stubbornly high in certain states, with Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Maharashtra, and West Bengal, accounting for almost half of all such births, finds research published in the open access journal BMJ Global Health.
Low birthweight is important, because it often signals underlying maternal health issues and poor nutrition as well as the child’s future cognitive development and susceptibility to chronic conditions in later life, note ...
Over half of primary and secondary school teachers in England have not been trained in how to support parents’ involvement in children’s learning and education at home and at school.
That’s according to research published today in the peer-reviewed journal Educational Review, which is a first study of its kind based on a survey of more than 1,700 teachers reveals concerning gaps in skills.
Led by academics from the University of Warwick and UCL, the paper shows teachers’ essential pre-qualification training fails to ...
