Steel’s future in auto is bright, especially - and not despite - the ongoing electrification trend, market sources tell Kallanish.

A producer at one top-tier mill says the efforts put into developing advanced high-strength steels (AHSS) and ultra high-strength steels (UHSS) for lightweighting are equally applicable to battery-powered vehicles.

The original goal of lightweighting was to decrease emissions by increasing the average mile-per-gallon traveled without resorting to costly or environmentally unproven alternatives like aluminium or carbon fiber. While battery electric vehicles (BEVs) produce no emissions, steel is still the material of choice from a strength, weight, lifecycle, and supply chain perspective, he says. 

“These BEV manufacturers have determined that they need to hit various cost/price points in these vehicles. They cannot make these fleets of BEVs in the coming decades all priced at $100,000 if they plan to sell them to you and me, so let’s say they target a $30,000 average cost,” he says. “ If they achieve lightweighting needs through steel versus other more costly materials and shave off $5,000 from the production cost below target, they can actually spend more money on the battery pack and other items to make the vehicle range more palatable to the public. A win-win-win in my mind.”

A Midwest buyer notes that steel’s attractive price point will keep it relevant through the electric revolution. 

“Carbon fiber is too expensive, and they use aluminium now only where they can afford it,” he says, adding that it might still be too early to gauge the true impact - positive or negative - for electrification on steel. 

At least one major steelmaker is putting cap-ex directly into the electrification trend. US Steel is in the midst of producing a new non-grain oriented electrical steel line, ultimately destined for electric motor production. Cleveland-Cliffs has also begun expansion into the non-grain oriented arena.