India’s steel sector, responsible for 12% of the country’s total global emissions, faces a challenging journey toward decarbonization, said Neha Verma, Director, Ministry of Steel. Speaking at the Economic Times Energy Leadership Awards, Verma highlighted that India currently emits 2.54 tons of CO2 per ton crude steel, compared to the global average of 1.91 tons. "We have a long way to go," Verma said, underscoring the significant carbon footprint of India’s second-largest steel-producing industry.
Verma laid out the challenges, stating that the steel sector, heavily reliant on coal, is a key contributor to emissions. "Steel is what you cannot live without and its emissions are what we cannot live with," she remarked, noting that the sector is classified as a “hard to abate” industry due to its dependence on carbon for both energy and chemical processes in steelmaking.
Despite these challenges, India’s steel industry is slated for rapid growth, with production expected to increase from 170 million tons to 300 million tons by by 2030.
India’s strategy involves incremental emissions reductions, with a target to lower the emission intensity of steel production from 2.54 tons to 2.2 tons of CO2 per ton by 2030. “There’s no silver bullet here,” Verma warned, describing the complex technological, financial, and structural challenges the sector faces .