BHP has locked in a deal to support India’s steelmaking decarbonisation journey.
India’s largest government-owned steel producer, the Steel Authority of India Limited (SAIL), will work with BHP to lower carbon steelmaking technology pathways for the country’s blast furnace route.
Under a memorandum of understanding, the parties are already exploring a number of workstreams supporting the potential decarbonisation of SAIL’s blast furnace steel plants, commencing with an initial study to assess various strategies to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
These workstreams will consider the role of alternate reductants for the blast furnace such as hydrogen and biochar use, with a view to also building local research and development capability to support the decarbonisation transition.
BHP chief commercial officer Rag Udd said the deployment of technology and abatements on the blast furnace is critical to progressing India’s decarbonised steel industry.
“We recognise that decarbonising this industry is a challenge that we cannot meet alone, and we must come together to leverage shared expertise and resources, to support the development of technologies and capability that could have the potential to create a real change in carbon emissions both now and in the longer term,” Udd said.
SAIL chair Shri Amarendu Prakash said mid- to long-term partnerships like SAIL’s collaboration with BHP are vital to decarbonising not only India’s steel industry, but will have implications on a global scale.
“SAIL is looking forward to this collaboration with BHP in taking a step forward towards engaging in developing sustainable ways to produce steel,” Prakash said.
“SAIL is committed to contributing towards tackling the issue of climate change through fostering an innovative future for the steel industry in India.”
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