CBAM will open up opportunities for India to export green steel to the EU – JSW Steel

The European CBAM will open a window of opportunity for India to export green steel to the EU. This opinion was expressed in an interview with BigMint by Saji Samuel, Executive Vice President (Long Products), JSW Steel.

According to him, the country’s steel mills have started to see significant domestic consumption only in the last 15-20 years.

«The current and next decade is a consumption phase in India, but we also have to deal with the mandate and requirements for green steel both domestically and for export,» Saji Samuel said.

The executive vice president of JSW Steel noted that the investment of mills in the latest BOF solutions, which are aimed at increasing consumption, is quite high and usually lasts for 40-45 years. Consequently, the companies will have to produce steel with lower emissions within the limits of technology. However, they are also investing in production with a lower CO2 intensity.

«However, green steel is mainly a technology change that will take time,» he says.

According to Saji Samuel, Indian steelmakers should first meet the EU’s demand for green steel, and at a price that is not too high. European requirements for certain grades and quality in general will also put Indian plants in a difficult position. So, despite the precautionary measures, suppliers from India will have a window of opportunity to export green steel to the European Union.

As a reminder, large steel producers in India are accelerating their decarbonization investments. However, it will be difficult for small and medium-sized enterprises in India operating in the steel sector to comply with the requirements of the European CBAM – monitoring, reporting and verification – due to limited resources and technical capabilities.