Hebei will certify more than 20 types of green steel by 2026

Hebei Province, China’s largest steel-producing region, plans to certify more than 20 types of green steel by 2026. These goals are included in the list of key tasks for modernizing the metallurgical industry by 2026, which was released by the province’s Department of Industry and Information Technology.

According to Zhang Xiaohui, head of the department’s metallurgical industry division, the sector is expected to achieve breakthroughs in 25 key technologies, develop more than 30 new product types, certify over 20 categories of green steel, and promote 10 major models for the metallurgical industry over the course of the year. In addition, the province plans to accelerate the implementation of 36 key projects.

The document calls for strengthening the competitiveness of Hebei’s metallurgy sector by creating so-called “flagship” products—high-value-added goods designed to fill gaps in domestic or regional production. This approach is intended to help local enterprises transition from mass production of standard steel to more technologically advanced and specialized segments.

Specifically, Shougang Zhixin plans to implement a project to produce 100,000 tons per year of high-performance, application-specific electrical steel. Provincial officials state that this is intended to fill a global niche in the segment of high-grade electrical steel with high magnetic permeability.

Another focus will be the development of stainless steel bar production. At Tangshan Zhengfeng Steel, there are plans to implement a project to produce stainless steel angles, which is expected to fill a gap in Hebei Province’s own range of metal products.

The plan places special emphasis on green steel. The certification of over 20 types of such steel is intended to be part of a broader transformation of the industry, which includes decarbonizing production, improving product manufacturability, and adapting to consumer demand, which is placing stricter requirements on the carbon footprint of materials.

Hebei plays a key role in China’s steel industry, so the implementation of these objectives could be significant not only for the domestic Chinese market but also for global competition in the segments of specialty steels and low-carbon steel products. For Chinese producers, this is also a response to the industry’s structural challenges—excess capacity, pressure on margins, and the need to transition to higher-value-added products.

As reported by GMK Center, steel production in China fell below the 1 billion-ton mark in 2025, reaching its lowest level since 2018. According to the National Bureau of Statistics, the country produced 960.81 million tons of steel during the period, a 4.4% decrease compared to 2024. The decline was a result of the protracted crisis in the real estate market, which significantly curtailed domestic demand for steel products.