ABB achieves new world record for motor efficiency at Indian steel plant

By Staff Report May 28, 2025 5:18 pm IST

ABB set a new world record with a large synchronous electric motor, achieving 99.13% efficiency under its Top Industrial Efficiency (TIE) initiative.

ABB broke the world record for energy efficiency with a new large synchronous motor designed under Top Industrial Efficiency (TIE) initiative, which surpasses standard benchmarks to reduce electricity use, operating costs, and total cost of ownership without compromising performance.

The motor, built for a steel plant in India, achieved 99.13% efficiency, surpassing ABB’s 2017 record of 99.05%. As efficiency approaches the 100% theoretical limit, design and manufacturing challenges increase, which kept the previous record unbroken for 8 years.

Using a TIE-optimised motor instead of a standard 98.64% efficient design will save about 61 GWh of energy and $5.9 million in electricity costs over 25 years while avoiding 45,000 tonnes of CO₂ emissions—equal to removing 10,000 cars from the road. Savings could be higher in countries with more expensive electricity.

The motor will drive an air separation unit (ASU) that will liquefy atmospheric air so that the oxygen and nitrogen can be separated out to provide pure gases for the steelmaking process.

Brandon Spencer, President of ABB Motion, stated, “ABB is on a mission to help industries outrun – leaner and cleaner – and this project shows how our products go beyond standards with our Top Industrial Efficiency (TIE) initiative, which delivers large motors and generators with the highest possible energy efficiency. This initiative helps our customers boost profitability since electricity costs are, by far, the largest component in the total cost of ownership (TCO) of this type of motor; at the same time, they are also cutting their carbon emissions.”

ABB’s TIE initiative addresses a gap in energy efficiency standards for large motors (3 MW+), which, despite being a part of the global motor base, consume about 25% of all motion-related energy.

The new efficiency record highlights ABB’s ongoing optimisation of motor design, supported by over a century of manufacturing experience, with typical efficiencies for such motors ranging between 98.2% and 98.5%.