India approves 13 green steel task forces

The Indian steel ministry has approved 13 task forces to define the roadmap for green steel, in a step towards lowering carbon emissions from the industry.

India's steel minister Jyotiraditya Scindia announced 13 task forces for green steel, in a meeting with integrated steel plants and secondary steel industry advisory committees last week. The task forces are divided according to four "mission components". The first component is key enablers, which will define green steel and develop benchmarks, certification and monitoring of carbon emissions from steel plants.

The second component seeks to define a policy framework for creating demand for green steel across key end-use sectors. The third component seeks a supply side push that includes improving energy efficiency, transitioning to renewable energy, increased usage of beneficiation, pellets and scrap, determining requirements of green hydrogen up to 2030, adoption of carbon capture utilisation and storage (CCUS) and exploring interim transition pathways to green steel in direct reduced iron (DRI) making.

The last component focuses on research and development, exploring innovative financing mechanisms, identifying measures taken across the world for green steel production and exploring possible collaborations and skill development.

"The move is expected to drive the development and adoption of sustainable steel making practices and technologies in India. This will not only help to reduce the carbon footprint of the steel industry but also contribute to India's efforts to combat climate change," the ministry said last week.

India aims to be carbon neutral by 2070. The average carbon emission intensity of the Indian steel industry reduced from around 3.1 t/tonne of crude steel (T/tcs) in 2005 to around 2.6 T/tcs by 2020, according to data from the country's steel ministry. The country has set a target to cut total carbon emissions by 30-35pc below 2005 levels by 2030.

The Indian Steel Association (ISA) had in January 2022 called for policy enablers from the government to fuel production and adoption of green steel in the country.

The European Commission's Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) is expected to take effect in October 2023. Under the mechanism, importers will be required to report carbon emissions associated with covered goods, which includes steel. Importers will need to purchase CBAM certificates from January 2026, when the mechanism becomes fully operational. Europe is a major steel export destination for Indian mills.

India aims to reach 300mn t/yr of steel production capacity by the end of the decade. But there are several challenges in producing green steel, including lack of affordable green hydrogen production for commercial purposes.

Scindia also asked highlighted that steel producers need to increase the capacity of their washeries to increase coal output, given increasing demand for coking coal in the country, and explore new sources for imports of the raw material. Scindia also asked secondary steel representatives to explore speciality steel exports to western markets and to find more sources of scrap in the country.

By Sumita Layek