PyroGenesis Canada Inc. announced that it has signed a small contract with one of the five largest steelmakers in the world to assess the applicability of PyroGenesis' fully electric plasma torches for use in the client's manufacturing facilities as a primary heat source in the steelmaking process, specifically during the production of direct reduced iron (DRI) for use in electric arc furnaces (EAF). The client's name shall remain anonymous for competitive and confidentiality reasons. The client, an overseas entity with manufacturing facilities on five continents, is one of the five largest companies of its kind.

The project agreement outlines the initial steps for providing plasma-specific data and analysis in support of the client's energy-transition goals. The first step is a feasibility study to gather initial data for evaluating the potential use of plasma in the client's factories as a process heating source for the DRI process. The duration of the study is approximately 60 days, commencing in April 2024.

Once the study is completed, and contingent on the results, the client has indicated that it may proceed to a live experimental validation study within their facilities, using PyroGenesis' plasma torches, as per a separate to-be-negotiated agreement. The client's goal is to understand how plasma can be used during the reduction step of iron ore, where oxygen is removed from iron ore pellets or powders to convert the raw ore into a metallic state, thereby creating "sponge iron" that is then added to an EAF for processing into steel. The DRI method for ore reduction for use in EAF was originally developed to overcome some of the challenges of the traditional blast furnace method, including the high costs of capital investment in an integrated steel mill, limited supply in some regions of the coking coal required by blast furnaces, and perhaps most importantly, the environmental impact that blast furnace methods can have.

The Company's development of plasma LEDs is part of the Company's three-tiered solution ecosystem that align with economic drivers that are key to global heavy industry. Plasma engines for use in process heating and industrial furnaces within manufacturing facilities is part of the Energy Transition & Emission Reduction tier, where fuel switching to the Company's electric-powered plasma LEDs helps heavy industry reduce fossil fuel use and greenhouse gas emissions.