U.S. Steel Kosice Works power station
| Part of the Global Coal Plant Tracker, a Global Energy Monitor project. |
| Related coal trackers: |
U.S. Steel Kosice Works power station is an operating power station of at least 208-megawatts (MW) in U.S. Steel Košice plant, Košice II, Košický, Slovakia.
Location
Table 1: Project-level location details
| Plant name | Location | Coordinates (WGS 84) |
|---|---|---|
| U.S. Steel Kosice Works power station | U.S. Steel Košice plant, Košice II, Košický, Slovakia | 48.615945, 21.194562 (exact) |
Unit-level coordinates (WGS 84):
- ': 48.615945, 21.194562
Project Details
Table 2: Unit-level details
| Status | Fuel(s) | Capacity (MW) | Technology | Start year | Emergency/Backup |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Operating | coal: unknown[1] | 208 | subcritical | 2008 | False |
Table 3: Unit-level ownership and operator details
| Owner | Parent |
|---|---|
| US Steel Košice sro [100%] | Nippon Steel Corp [100.0%] |
Project-level captive use details
- Captive industry: Iron & Steel
Project-level coal details
- Coal source(s): imported
Ownership Tree
This ownership tree is part of the Global Energy Ownership Tracker, a project of Global Energy Monitor.
Background
The U.S. Steel Kosice Works power station is a captive power plant that supplies energy to the steel refinery of Slovakia's U.S. Steel Kosice facility. In 2008, Czech energy utility CEZ and U. S. Steel Kosice created a framework for constructing a power-generating site at the steel plant. While the current power station is coal-fired, in December 2007 CEZ announced it was focusing on gas-fired power generation.[2]
In 2013, U.S. Steel said it planned to modernise and reconstruct its coal-fired boilers around Europe for around €80 million Euros to meet new emission limits and reduce the current levels of pollution. The modernization project was launched in 2014 and scheduled for completion in 2015.[3]
In 2014, the U.S. Steel group applied for a subsidy from to European Union (EU) to install new textile fibers that would reduce the dust and particulates from their burners. They received six million Euros; U.S. Steel invested a further 11 million Euros into the project to meet the costs.[4]
In 2019, due to increasing costs and competition from outside the EU, the U.S. Steel group said it would fire around a fifth of its workforce in Slovakia over by the next two years, which will affect around 2,500 of the nearly 12,000 workers at the Kosice plant, which is located in a poorer region of Slovakia already struggling with high unemployment.[5]
In 2020, analysis by the Research Institute on Social and Economic Risks showed that the U.S. Steel Kosice refinery was worst polluter in Slovakia, emitting above 65,000 tonnes of carbon monoxide in 2019 — four times more than the next polluter on their list. The refinery was also the primary polluter for nitric oxide, of which it emitted 2,800 tonnes in 2019. According to the Research Institute on Social and Economic Risks, the Kosice region is Slovakia's most polluted area because of the steel mill's presence.[6]
In January 2026, a feasibility study under the U.S.-led Project Phoenix confirmed that the U.S. Steel Košice site was one of four locations in Slovakia suitable for the deployment of small modular reactors (SMRs).[7]
Ownership Change
In April 2022, US Steel was reportedly looking to sell their Košice operations.[8] As of December 2023, Nippon Steel was to acquire US Steel.[9]
In 2025, U.S. Steel joined the Nippon Steel Group following the completion of Nippon Steel's acquisition of U.S. Steel. In May 2026, Nippon Steel announced that U.S. Steel Košice would transition to its direct ownership on October 1, 2026, at which point the company would be renamed Nippon Steel Slovakia s.r.o. (NSSK), becoming a core operating hub in Nippon Steel's European strategy.[10]
Environmental Justice Issues
According to the Environmental Justice Atlas, the U.S. Steel Kosice steel refinery has set up a large wall outside the plant to segregate a nearby Roma minority community of 800 people. Beginning in 2013, the government also cut off the water supply for the Roma, citing "overuse." Given that the steel refinery is a major source of pollution, likely hazards for the Roma residents include health issues, increase air pollution, water contamination and more. The U.S. Steel Kosice plant has reportedly yet to resolve the issue of segregation and discrimination.[11]
U. S. Steel Košice had reportedly installed a computer model ranking blast furnace charge materials by emissions potential, allowing operations to be adjusted to reduce carbon dioxide emissions. The company said the system had reduced annual greenhouse gas emissions by up to 69,000 tonnes.[12]
Articles and Resources
References
- ↑ https://www.gem.wiki/Coal_source_methodology_for_the_Global_Coal_Plant_Tracker.
{{cite web}}: Missing or empty|title=(help) - ↑ "CEZ GROUP AND U. S. STEEL KOSICE SIGNED A MEMORANDUM OF UNDERSTANDING". CEZ Group. 2008-10-01. Retrieved 2021-06-30.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ↑ Vilikovská, Zuzana (2013-10-16). "U.S. Steel Košice preparing a huge energy investment". spectator.sme.sk. Retrieved 2021-06-30.
- ↑ "Blast Furnaces particulate emissions reduced by 90 percent". US Steel Kosice. 2021-04-14. Retrieved 2021-06-30.
- ↑ "U.S. Steel to lay off 2,500 workers in Slovakia - France 24". France 24. 2019-07-19. Retrieved 2021-06-30.
- ↑ Strategic Research Institute (2020-12-22). "US Steel Kosice Worst Polluter in Slovakia - Report". SteelGuru Business News. Retrieved 2021-06-30.
- ↑ "Nuclear Power in Slovakia". world-nuclear.org. 2026.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ↑ Zistenie HN: košický U. S. Steel ponúkajú na predaj, HN Online, April 13, 2022
- ↑ Nippon Steel Corporation (NSC) to Acquire U. S. Steel, Moving Forward Together as the 'Best Steelmaker with World-Leading Capabilities', U. S. Steel Košice, December 18, 2023
- ↑ "Nippon Steel Makes Transition to Direct Ownership in U.S. Steel Košice". usske.sk. May 2026.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ↑ Hanacek, Ksenija (2019-08-26). "Roma settlement next to the US Steel factory and with a segregation wall build by the local government, Slovakia | EJAtlas". Environmental Justice Atlas. Retrieved 2021-06-30.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ↑ "Greenhouse gas emissions". U. S. Steel Košice. Retrieved May 16, 2026.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
Additional data
To access additional data, including an interactive map of coal-fired power stations, a downloadable dataset, and summary data, please visit the Global Coal Plant Tracker on the Global Energy Monitor website.
