If operated until the end of their typical lifetime under current conditions, these and other assets in the steel industry could lead to around 65 Gt CO 2 of cumulative emissions. This rapid growth has resulted in a young global blast furnace fleet of around 13 years of age on average, 2 which is less than a third of the typical lifetime of these plants. Global crude steel production capacity has more than doubled over the past two decades three-quarters of the growth took place in China and around 85% of total capacity today is located in emerging economies. This means that recycling alone cannot be relied upon to reduce emissions from the sector to the extent needed to meet climate goals.Įxisting infrastructure cannot be ignored if energy and climate goals are to be achieved. However, scrap cannot fulfil the sector’s raw material input requirements alone because steel production today is higher than when the products that are currently being recycled were produced. This benefit results in high recycling rates (around 80-90% globally). Steel production from scrap requires around one-eighth of the energy of that produced from iron ore – mainly in the form of electricity, rather than coal for production from iron ore. While iron ore is the source of around 70% of the metallic raw material inputs to steelmaking globally, the rest is supplied in the form of recycled steel scrap. Steel is one of the most highly recycled materials in use today. Steel needs energy and the energy system needs steel Coal is used to generate heat and to make coke, which is instrumental in the chemical reactions necessary to produce steel from iron ore. 1 The steel sector is currently the largest industrial consumer of coal, which provides around 75% of its energy demand. The iron and steel sector directly accounts for 2.6 gigatonnes of carbon dioxide (Gt CO 2) emissions annually, 7% of the global total from the energy system and more than the emissions from all road freight. Since 1970 global demand for steel has increased more than threefold and continues to rise as economies grow, urbanise, consume more goods and build up their infrastructure.Īmong heavy industries, the iron and steel sector ranks first when it comes to CO 2 emissions, and second when it comes energy consumption. Steel will also be an integral ingredient for the energy transition, with solar panels, wind turbines, dams and electric vehicles all depending on it to varying degrees. The construction of homes, schools, hospitals, bridges, cars and trucks – to name just a few examples – rely heavily on steel. Steel is deeply engrained in our society. As such, the publication concludes with an outline of priority actions, policies and milestones for these stakeholders to accelerate progress towards zero emissions from the iron and steel sector. Realising this more sustainable trajectory will require co-ordinated efforts from key stakeholders, including steel producers, governments, financial partners and the research community. It also assesses the potential for resource efficiency, including increased reuse, recycling and demand reduction. Considering both the challenges and the opportunities, it analyses the key technologies and processes that would enable substantial CO2 emission reductions in the sector. This report explores the technologies and strategies necessary for the iron and steel sector to pursue a pathway compatible with the IEA’s broader vision of a more sustainable energy sector. However, through innovation, low-carbon technology deployment and resource efficiency, iron and steel producers have a major opportunity to reduce energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions, develop more sustainable products and enhance their competitiveness. The sector is currently responsible for about 8% of global final energy demand and 7% of energy sector CO2 emissions (including process emissions). Meeting this demand presents challenges for the iron and steel sector as it seeks to plot a more sustainable pathway while remaining competitive. Steel is vital to modern economies and so over the coming decades global demand for steel is expected to grow to meet rising social and economic welfare needs.
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