Coking coal, iron ore may not be viable for steel making in future: Scindia

Scindia urged the domestic steel industry to adopt low-carbon emitting steel-making processes

Union minister Jyotiraditya Scindia on Tuesday urged the domestic steel industry to adopt low-carbon emitting steel-making processes, while cautioning that key raw material coking coal and iron ore may not be a viable option in the future based on an ESG parameter.

The comments have come at a time when India moves to double its steel-making capacity to 300 million tonnes (MT).

"From the second largest producer of steel, we must also become responsible producers of steel in the world. There will come a time in the near distant future when today's raw materials be it iron ore or coking coal will no longer be a viable option not necessarily from a cost structure parameter but from an environmental, social, and governance (ESG) parameter," Scindia said at an event here.

The minister said that environmental concerns could arise in future and the government and the private sector will have to work together to prepare for that "eventuality today".

"The industry can look for options like the use of renewable energy that can cut CO2 emissions, pelletization. In India, every 1 per cent increase in Fe (iron) content results in 1 per cent lower consumption of coke in the process, and the less coke you consume, the lesser CO2 emissions occur," the minister said.

Options of using plastic, not as raw material but in the process of the value chain and use of scrap in steel making can be looked at.

India uses 20 per cent of scrap in steel production, he said adding that 26 MT of scrap is generated domestically and 4 MT is imported.

The government has been pushing for the usage of renewable energy sources besides other low-carbon generating technologies in the steel sector in various processes of manufacturing.

The steel minister was speaking at the launch of Kalyani Group's first green steel brand 'Kalyani FeRRESTA'.

On the green steel brand, Kalyani Steels Managing Director R. K. Goyal, the product is the "country's first green steel product which has been produced through usage of green energy." It is a long steel product to be used by industries such as defence aerospace etc, he said.