India is taking a significant step towards developing indigenous green steel technology by forming a consortium that includes research labs, IITs, steelmakers, and equipment manufacturers.
In June, the steel ministry announced tenders under the national green hydrogen mission, allocating ₹455 crore to encourage industry involvement. The funding is intended to partially support the initiative.
The Institute of Minerals and Management Technology is leading the consortium, which aims to pilot the nation’s first green steelmaking project using a hundred percent hydrogen-based direct reduced iron (DRI) production method.
The government has requested that technology provider Danieli reduce the cost of a 0.5 million ton hydrogen based DRI plant from ₹800 crore to ₹400 crore to make it more affordable for steel companies.
As reported by manufacturingtodayindia.com, the government is creating a decarbonization roadmap to lower the steel sector’s carbon footprint, which currently accounts for 12% of India’s total emissions.
This plan includes increasing the use of hydrogen and carbon capture technologies in steel production. India’s goal is to reduce the carbon intensity in steel production by about 20% from the current 2.5 tonnes of carbon per tonne of steel.
The initiative marks a crucial move towards sustainable and environmentally friendly steel production in India. It is in line with global efforts to combat climate change and reduce industrial carbon emissions, offering a promising future for the steel industry.
