{"id":265090,"date":"2025-11-06T12:39:15","date_gmt":"2025-11-06T13:39:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.premium-partners.net\/?p=265090"},"modified":"2025-11-07T11:03:36","modified_gmt":"2025-11-07T11:03:36","slug":"a-cleaner-future-for-steelmaking-in-south-africa","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.premium-partners.net\/fr\/builder\/a-cleaner-future-for-steelmaking-in-south-africa\/","title":{"rendered":"A cleaner future for steelmaking in South Africa"},"content":{"rendered":"

This post<\/a> was originally published on this site<\/a><\/p>

<\/p>\n

Steel is indispensable to modern life, forming the backbone of everything from buildings and vehicles to electronics and household appliances, but the way most of it is made has long been one of the world\u2019s dirtiest industrial processes. <\/span> <\/p>\n

Conventional steel production is extremely energy-intensive and relies heavily on coal-fired blast furnaces that burn coal to extract iron from ore, releasing vast amounts of carbon dioxide and other pollutants. <\/span><\/p>\n

For every tonne of steel produced, nearly two tonnes of CO\u2082 are emitted with estimates for South Africa emitting 2.5 metric tonnes of CO\u2082 per ton of crude steel, well above the global average.<\/span><\/p>\n

The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) 2025 report titled Implementing the Framework for Industry\u2019s Net-Zero Transition in South Africa<\/i>, identifies the steel sector as one of the country\u2019s largest industrial carbon emitters. In short, it proposes that South Africa\u2019s iron and steel industry will need to clean up if the country is to reduce carbon emissions and decarbonise by 2050. <\/span>  <\/span><\/p>\n

The steel industry, it says, can move from blast furnaces to using scrap steel to making steel with electric furnaces while ensuring the utilised electricity is generated through cleaner and renewable methods.  The OECD estimates the country will need between $25 billion and $30 billion in investment by 2050 to cut its greenhouse gas emissions by up to 85%.<\/span>  <\/span><\/p>\n

It recommends a phased approach to decarbonisation in the steel industry: first improving energy efficiency, then using electric arc furnaces to make steel, and finally, after 2035, deploying green hydrogen energy and carbon capture technologies at scale. <\/span><\/p>\n

While such a national transformation will take decades, companies like Coega Steels and the so-called mini-mills are already proving what is possible. Using scrap steel from end-of-life cars, construction materials, and appliances, electric steel furnaces avoid the environmental costs of mining new iron ore. Each tonne of recycled steel significantly reduces carbon emissions, waste, and energy use.<\/span> <\/p>\n

The move towards green steel is a global one. <\/span>  <\/span><\/h3>\n

For example, traditionally, China relied almost entirely on blast furnaces that used iron ore and coal to produce steel. Over the past decade, however, the country has been steadily expanding its use of Electric Furnaces, which melt scrap steel using electricity rather than coal. In 2015, electric furnaces accounted for only about 6\u201310% of China\u2019s total steel output, but by 2024 that share had risen to roughly 15\u201320%. The Chinese government now aims to increase this to 30% or more by 2030. This shift is driven by climate targets, cost efficiency, and the growing availability of scrap steel as China\u2019s economy matures and generates more recyclable material.<\/span><\/p>\n

A move towards using electric steel production, however, places a burden on governments to ensure there is a sufficient source of scrap steel for electric steel producers to use in their domestic markets amidst high global demand. If South Africa is to move towards green steel, the government needs to continue to ensure scrap steel remains in the country.<\/span> <\/p>\n

Systems such as the price preference system (PPS), that ensures scrap is sold locally before export, and the scrap export tax that incentivises the availability of scrap are essential to keep mini mills accessing raw material. <\/span> <\/p>\n

Mini mills are essential as they are not only greener, but they also create jobs, employing more than 6,000 people across the country, representing a pathway to low-carbon industrial growth. <\/span><\/p>\n

Coega Steels is committed to greener steel manufacture. It was the first local producer to conduct an Environmental Product Declaration, a study that looks at emissions at every stage of the steelmaking process. It found that 74% of its emissions come from Eskom\u2019s coal-based electricity. <\/span><\/p>\n

The company aims to cut total emissions by 20% through renewable energy projects and by sourcing clean power from independent producers in line with suggestions from the OECD about improving renewable electricity supply.<\/span> <\/p>\n

Unlike competitors that are lobbying for negotiated pricing agreements for cheaper electricity tariffs, shifting costs onto households and small businesses, Coega Steels is investing directly in renewables. It already operates 785 kW of rooftop solar, will add another 7 MW this year, and has a 16 MW solar plant planned by the end of 2026. This will bring its total renewable generation to 24 MW, easing pressure on the grid while reducing costs and emissions.<\/span><\/p>\n

Coega Steels and South Africa\u2019s mini mills already represent the first wave of industrial decarbonisation, producing steel far more cleanly than traditional blast furnaces. <\/span><\/p>\n

With the right policy support, sufficient scrap availability, and a growing renewable power base, South Africa can position itself as a competitive producer of green steel, a win for the environment, jobs, and industrial renewal.<\/span> <\/p>\n

Amit Saini, spokesperson for Coega Steels.<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

BUSINESS REPORT <\/strong><\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Steel\u00a0is indispensable to modern life, forming the backbone of everything from buildings and vehicles to electronics and household appliances, but the way most of it is made has long been one of the world\u2019s dirtiest industrial processes.\u00a0\u00a0Conventional\u00a0steel\u00a0production is extremely energy-intensive and relies heavily on coal-fired blast furnaces that burn coal to extract iron from ore, releasing vast amounts of carbon dioxide and other pollutants. For every\u00a0tonne\u00a0of\u00a0steel\u00a0produced,\u00a0nearly two\u00a0tonnes\u00a0of CO\u2082 are emitted with estimates for South Africa emitting 2.5 metric\u00a0tonnes\u00a0of CO\u2082 per ton of crude\u00a0steel, well above the global average.The\u00a0Organisation\u00a0for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) 2025 report titled\u00a0Implementing the Framework for\u00a0Industry\u2019s Net-Zero Transition in South Africa,\u00a0identifies\u00a0the\u00a0steel\u00a0sector as one of the country\u2019s largest industrial carbon emitters. In short, it\u00a0proposes that\u00a0South Africa\u2019s iron and\u00a0steel\u00a0industry\u00a0will need to clean up if the country is to reduce carbon\u00a0emissions\u00a0and\u00a0decarbonise\u00a0by 2050.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0The\u00a0steel\u00a0industry, it says, can move from blast furnaces to using scrap\u00a0steel\u00a0to making\u00a0steel\u00a0with electric furnaces while\u00a0ensuring\u00a0the\u00a0utilised\u00a0electricity is generated\u00a0through\u00a0cleaner and renewable\u00a0methods.\u00a0\u00a0The OECD estimates the country will need between $25 billion and $30 billion in investment by 2050 to cut its greenhouse gas emissions by up to 85%.\u00a0\u00a0It recommends a phased approach to\u00a0decarbonisation\u00a0in the\u00a0steel\u00a0industry: first improving energy efficiency, then\u00a0using\u00a0electric arc furnaces to make\u00a0steel, and finally, after 2035, deploying green hydrogen energy and carbon capture technologies at scale.\u00a0While such a national transformation will take decades, companies like Coega Steels and the\u00a0so-called\u00a0mini-mills\u00a0are already proving what is possible. Using scrap\u00a0steel\u00a0from end-of-life cars, construction materials, and appliances,\u00a0electric\u00a0steel\u00a0furnaces\u00a0avoid the environmental costs of mining new iron ore. Each\u00a0tonne\u00a0of recycled\u00a0steel\u00a0significantly reduces carbon emissions, waste, and energy use.\u00a0The move towards green\u00a0steel\u00a0is a global one.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0For example, traditionally, China relied\u00a0almost entirely\u00a0on blast furnaces that used iron ore and coal to produce\u00a0steel. Over the past decade, however, the country has been steadily expanding its use of Electric Furnaces, which melt scrap\u00a0steel\u00a0using electricity rather than coal. In 2015,\u00a0electric furnaces\u00a0accounted for only about 6\u201310% of China\u2019s total\u00a0steel\u00a0output, but by 2024 that share had risen to\u00a0roughly 15\u201320%. The Chinese government now aims to increase this to 30% or more by 2030. This shift is driven by climate targets, cost efficiency, and the growing availability of scrap\u00a0steel\u00a0as China\u2019s economy matures and generates more recyclable material.A move towards using electric\u00a0steel\u00a0production, however, places a burden on governments to ensure there is a sufficient source of scrap\u00a0steel\u00a0for electric\u00a0steel\u00a0producers to use in their domestic markets\u00a0amidst\u00a0high global demand. If South Africa is to move towards\u00a0green\u00a0steel, the government needs to continue to ensure scrap\u00a0steel\u00a0remains\u00a0in the country.\u00a0Systems such as the price preference system (PPS), that ensures scrap is sold locally before\u00a0export, and the scrap export tax that\u00a0incentivises\u00a0the availability of scrap are essential to keep mini mills accessing raw material.\u00a0\u00a0Mini mills\u00a0are essential as they are not only\u00a0greener,\u00a0but they\u00a0also create jobs, employing more than 6,000 people across the country,\u00a0representing\u00a0a pathway to low-carbon industrial growth.\u00a0Coega Steels is committed to\u00a0greener\u00a0steel\u00a0manufacture.\u00a0It\u00a0was the first local producer to conduct an Environmental Product Declaration,\u00a0a study that looks at emissions\u00a0at every stage of the\u00a0steelmaking\u00a0process. It found that 74%\u00a0of its emissions come from Eskom\u2019s coal-based electricity. The company aims to cut total emissions by 20%\u00a0through renewable energy projects and by sourcing clean power from independent producers in line with suggestions from the OECD\u00a0about improving renewable\u00a0electricity supply.\u00a0Unlike competitors that\u00a0are lobbying for negotiated pricing agreements for cheaper electricity\u00a0tariffs, shifting costs\u00a0onto\u00a0households and small businesses, Coega Steels is investing directly in renewables. It already\u00a0operates\u00a0785 kW of rooftop solar, will add another 7 MW this year, and has a 16 MW solar plant planned by the end of 2026. This will bring its total renewable generation to 24 MW, easing pressure on the grid while reducing costs and emissions.Coega Steels and South Africa\u2019s mini mills already\u00a0represent\u00a0the first wave of industrial\u00a0decarbonisation, producing\u00a0steel\u00a0far more\u00a0cleanly\u00a0than traditional blast furnaces. With the right policy support, sufficient scrap availability, and a growing renewable power base, South Africa can position itself as a competitive producer of green\u00a0steel, a win for the environment, jobs, and industrial renewal.\u00a0Amit Saini, spokesperson for Coega Steels.BUSINESS REPORT\u00a0<\/p>","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":265092,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-265090","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-builder"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.premium-partners.net\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/265090","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.premium-partners.net\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.premium-partners.net\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.premium-partners.net\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.premium-partners.net\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=265090"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.premium-partners.net\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/265090\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":265091,"href":"https:\/\/www.premium-partners.net\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/265090\/revisions\/265091"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.premium-partners.net\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/265092"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.premium-partners.net\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=265090"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.premium-partners.net\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=265090"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.premium-partners.net\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=265090"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}