Air Liquide signs contract with ThyssenKrupp Steel Europe

Strengthening its position in Germany, Air Liquide has signed a major long-term gas supply contract with ThyssenKrupp Steel Europe AG in the Rhine-Ruhr region, one of the largest and leading industrial pools in Europe.

The contract includes 4,600 tonnes of oxygen per day, plus nitrogen and argon, to be supplied to the ThyssenKrupp steel mill based on the Duisburg cluster, Europe's largest steelmaking region supplying the automotive industry in Germany.

Oxygen, nitrogen and argon are needed by the steel industry for enriching air in oxygen steelmaking processes. The use of these gases improves the productivity and energy efficiency of steelmaking while lowering atmospheric emissions.

The gases will be transported over 500 km of the local Air Liquide pipeline network, which already serves customers in the metallurgical, chemical and petrochemical industries in the Rhine - Ruhr region. This Air Liquide pipeline allows gas supply to the largest factories, and was introduced by Air Liquide in 2012. The pipeline provides a continuous and reliable way of delivering gases to industrial consumers.

The Air Liquide Group manages over 9,000 km of gas pipelines around the world. Air Liquide is proud to have been selected as one of the premier suppliers in the metalworking industry. It plans to strengthen its relationship with Germany's largest steel company, ThyssenKrupp, which has a large production capacity and has enormous demands on its industrial gas supplier.