Steel is present everywhere – in your cutlery drawer, in the building you live in, in your car or bicycle, in your home appliances – everywhere you look. Steel is also one of the most emission-intensive materials, causing approximately 7% of global greenhouse gas emissions and 11% of carbon dioxide emissions, and steel demand is expected to rise by 32% by 2050. We assessed the sustainability of large steel procuring companies’ supply chains on a general level, as well as for steel specifically, to set an outlook for the sector and evaluate what actions are needed next.
This report is a part of our work to push steel procuring companies to shift steel demand from traditional coal-based iron and steelmaking to new near-zero technologies.
Currently, most of the primary steel globally produced is manufactured in integrated facilities where the steel’s precursor iron is made by a chemical process relying on coal processed to coke. This reliance on coal is the main reason for the sector’s emission intensity. Business-as-usual coal-based iron and steel production has been projected to use up to 23% of the global carbon budget between 2023 and 20503 thus taking the planet way beyond the Paris agreement’s 1.5 ̊C goal. This is why urgent action is needed to cut emissions from iron and steel production.
Just Shift is campaigning for a Paris-aligned steel sector by 2050 by influencing steel procuring companies, public procurement, and financial institutions. This report is a part of our work to push steel procuring companies to shift steel demand from traditional coal-based iron and steelmaking to new near-zero technologies. This requires swift and determined action in the form of clear demand signals from companies using steel that they want to buy near-zero steel as soon as it is available on the market.