Steelmaking is responsible for 7% of the carbon emissions that drive climate change, and changing that equation requires more than a small upgrade. Laureen Meroueh, founder of Hertha Metals, has developed a new furnace method that aims to make steelmaking cheaper, cleaner, and simpler in one decisive move.
Hertha Metals’ process turns iron ore into refined liquid steel in a single step, swaps coal for natural gas, and simplifies the chemistry behind steelmaking. The company says the method cuts costs by 25% compared with traditional steelmaking while slashing emissions by at least half.
One Furnace, One Step, A Different Steelmaking Equation
Traditional steelmaking depends on a process with multiple stages and coal at its core. Hertha’s approach compresses the work into one furnace method, taking iron ore directly to refined liquid steel instead of separating the transformation across several steps.
That single-step design gives the company two targets at once: lower production costs and fewer emissions. The process replaces coal with natural gas, and Hertha says the change reduces emissions by at least half. The company also says its method cuts costs by 25% compared with traditional steelmaking.
The size of the production system matters, too. Iryna Zenyuk, director of the National Fuel Cell Research Center at the University of California, Irvine, said, “There’s huge value in reducing the size of this production system.”
For steel, even a small operating facility can represent a major technical milestone. Hertha’s pilot plant in Conroe, Texas, can produce one metric ton of steel per day, a scale that has drawn attention from Rajesh Swaminathan, partner at Khosla Ventures.
“One ton per day is a big metric for steel,” Swaminathan said.
From Texas Pilot Plant to 10,000 Metric Tons
The Conroe pilot plant gives Hertha a working platform for its single-step process, but the company’s next target reaches far beyond one metric ton each day. The new plant is slated to produce 10,000 metric tons of high-purity steel per year and should reach full capacity by the end of 2027.
That planned expansion turns the furnace from a pilot demonstration into a production system with a much larger output. Hertha had raised about $20 million in funding as of July 2026, giving the company capital behind its push toward the new plant.
The numbers show the challenge ahead. The United States produces approximately 80 million metric tons of steel annually, while Hertha’s planned new plant is slated to produce 10,000 metric tons per year. Even so, a production system that lowers costs and cuts emissions could create a path for wider adoption.
Hertha’s scale-up plan includes several clear steps:
- A pilot plant in Conroe, Texas, producing one metric ton of steel per day
- A new plant designed to produce 10,000 metric tons of high-purity steel per year
- Full capacity at the new plant targeted by the end of 2027
- Output of 500,000 metric tons per year targeted by 2030
- A third site included in the plan for reaching that 2030 output
A Cleaner Future Could Keep the Furnace
Natural gas gives Hertha’s current method a lower-emission route than coal, but the company is also looking beyond its first fuel choice. Meroueh said the current Hertha plant could eventually switch to a fully decarbonized system without drastically changing the hardware if hydrogen becomes more affordable.
That possibility adds another layer to the furnace design. Hertha is not only pursuing a process that uses natural gas today; the company is also positioning its hardware for a future hydrogen system, according to Meroueh’s statement.
The next four years will test whether the company can move from a one-metric-ton-per-day pilot plant to 10,000 metric tons per year, then toward 500,000 metric tons per year by 2030. That is an ambitious climb, but the opportunity is just as large: steelmaking produces 7% of the carbon emissions that drive climate change, and the US produces approximately 80 million metric tons of steel each year.
Hertha Metals now has a clear technical promise, a funding base of about $20 million as of July 2026, and a production roadmap built around larger plants. If the single-step furnace performs at each stage, steel could begin its next transformation with less coal, lower costs, and a system designed to move toward hydrogen without drastically changing the hardware.
