India to formulate green steel policy

India will formulate a policy on green steel and consider public procurement of such steel products. Secretary of the Ministry of Steel Sandeep Poundrick said this at a specialised event, Reuters reports.

He added that the ministry will also explore the possibility of encouraging smaller steel companies to produce low-carbon steel.

According to the Business Standard, India’s steel sector accounts for 12% of the country’s greenhouse gas emissions, with 2.5 tonnes of CO2 per tonne of steel produced, while the global average is 1.9 tonnes of CO2 per tonne of steel.

India will create a framework for formulating a strategy, roadmap and action plan for decarbonising the sector. To this end, the ministry has set up 14 working groups to discuss various ways to achieve the goal with the involvement of experts and industry stakeholders. They included representatives of industry, academia, innovative think tanks and government agencies. The findings were compiled into a comprehensive report.

The report addresses three key demand-side policy levers, including developing a taxonomy of green steel, monitoring CO2 emissions and creating market incentives. It also looks at seven supply-side levers, such as energy efficiency, renewable energy, material efficiency, technology transition and green hydrogen.

The country’s steel industry is currently facing challenges such as climate commitments, rising energy prices, strict environmental regulations and the need for technological innovation.

As GMK Center reported earlier, India is looking at alternative markets in the wake of the CBAM. Africa, Latin America and the Middle East are being studied as potential destinations. According to official data, flat products (hot-rolled and cold-rolled) account for the bulk of India’s steel exports. India exports hot-rolled steel products to more than 100 countries, with five EU countries accounting for 25% of these exports in FY2022/2023.