FME ZeMe: collaborative research for the transition to zero emissions metal production

Metals are essential for the green transition and to achieve the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. The are used in energy supply, transportation, IT and digital technologies, buildings and infrastructure and health care, among others. The Norwegian metals industry is a key supplier of low and zero emission metals and critical raw materials to Norway and Europe, providing supply security. Today the sector represents about 100 billion NOK in export value and is the 3rd most important export sector in Norway. It uses over 32 TWh electricity and emitted 5.8 million tonnes of CO₂, or 11% of Norway’s land-based CO₂ emissions. Decarbonizing the metals industry by 2050 and maintaining competitiveness is the most ambitious transformation the sector has ever gone through. Solutions for fuel switching, carbon capture, circularity and energy & resource efficiency as highlighted by the International Panel on Climate Change need to be developed and implemented. The use of clean, renewable energy is essential. It requires collaboration between the metals and energy industry actors and societal stakeholders to ensure supply and energy grid balance. FME ZeMe is a collaborative interdisciplinary research centre where industry actors, universities and research organisations work together to address this grand challenge. We develop new knowledge, technologies & value chains, create collaboration between people at all levels and from all disciplines, and educate & train the current and future workforce. The centre focusses on solutions for the copper, nickel, zinc, ferroalloy, aluminium, Si-carbide andTiO2 industries. FME ZeMe started in 2025, will run for 8 years, and will fund at least 19 PhD students in metallurgy, as well as B.Sc. and M.Sc. students. Two PhDs are international, one at Seoul National University (South Korea) and one at Université Laval (Canada). To enhance learning and knowledge transfer between researchers and between industry and research FME ZeMe provides researcher exchange programs, and industry stays to give the students practical experience as well. For the copper, nickel and zinc industry in particular our research focusses on further increasing the energy efficiency of the electrowinning and electorefining process itself. In the energy transition electrification is a key strategy, in industrial and residential applications, which can lead to shortages in supply of electricity from renewable sources and grid capacity issues. Using the available electricity as effectively as possible, will be key. FME ZeMe will investigate electrode processes, electrode surface stability and new electrocatalytic materials. Furthermore the centre has research activities on alternative reduction materials (biocarbon), carbon capture, circularity, digitalisation and process modeling, and advanced techniques for emission monitoring and control, and will connect to projects at partners, e.g. on hydrogen, energy flexibility. The technical solutions will be placed in a broader systemic and societal perspective. A framework for design and planning of zero emission metal production will be developed. The framework shall guide a just, effective, and robust transition, and be able to evaluate and integrate design options at the level of processes, value-chains, and sectors.