ABB and Sweden-based greentech company SaltX Technology (SaltX) have signed an agreement to enable the further development of technologies in the Electric Arc Calcination (EAC) process. ABB will also become a minority shareholder in SaltX.
The two companies are known for their expertise in electrifying emission-intensive industries, including the production of cement and quicklime, highly sought-after materials in modern construction and process industries. Today, manufacturers depend on fossil fuels for high-temperature heating, up to 900 degrees Celsius, and have no realistic alternative.
Under the new agreement, SaltX will further develop its innovative Electric Arc Calciner (EAC), a technology that can reach several thousand degrees Celsius. The electric plasma solution reinvents industrial calcination – the process used to heat materials to high temperatures – and replaces fossil-driven heating with renewable electricity while capturing the CO₂ emissions released. ABB will contribute with control and electrical systems for the EAC, creating a strong joint offering to the market. The collaboration aims to accelerate the commercialisation of SaltX’s electrification and carbon separation technology.
“SaltX gains an optimal industrial partner with extensive experience in scaling up and implementing new industrial technologies on a global scale, together with a substantial capital injection,” said Carl-Johan Linér, CEO of SaltX. “This strengthens us as a company and enables us to progress with our growth plans. With ABB and our other partners, we can significantly improve our capability to take a leading role in the electrification wave sweeping through the industrial sector.”
“At ABB, we are at the core of accelerating decarbonisation in the cement and other emission-intensive industries whilst providing world-class solutions to our customers,” said Michael Marti, Global Growth Industries Business Line Manager, ABB Process Industries. “Our collaboration with Salt X marks a significant milestone in this journey. The technology benefits are two-fold: replacing the use of fossil fuels through renewable electricity in the calcination process and enabling cost-efficient capture of the carbon emissions at the same time. It will be a highly effective way of curbing lime production emissions.”
The companies first collaborated to electrify the industrial process of calcination in 2022. This intensified in 2023 with the construction of SaltX’s research and test facility (ECRC).
