0525 GMT - Nippon Steel's plan to build an electric arc furnace at its Slovakian plant is a step forward in its efforts to lower carbon dioxide emissions. The Japanese company is investing about 900 million euros at its Slovakian operating unit to build an electric arc furnace and an air separation unit. The Slovakian unit is the Japanese company's biggest production hub in Europe. The new furnace would have an annual production capacity of about 1.6 million tons. While blast furnaces use coal-based fuel and are a major source of industrial CO2 emissions, electric arc furnaces melt recycled steel, resulting in lower carbon emissions. Nippon Steel aims to lower CO2 emissions by 30% in 2030, compared with 2013 levels.