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Global Steel Climate Council releases global standard to measure and report carbon emissions

WASHINGTON — The Global Steel Climate Council (GSCC) released a draft of The Steel Climate Standard, a global standard to measure and report steel carbon emissions. The standard focuses on reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from the global steel industry with a science-based glidepath to reduce emissions in line with the goal of the Paris Climate Agreement to achieve a 1.5º C scenario. The standard offers a single, technology-agnostic protocol that would apply to all steel producers equally on a global basis and would enable steel customers to know and compare the actual carbon emissions associated with steel products.

In publishing its standard, the GSCC is inviting interested organizations to review The Steel Climate Standard and submit comments, which are due by May 17, 2023. The full text of the document and guidelines on submitting comments can be found at: https://globalsteelclimatecouncil.org

“Steel companies and associations from around the world have come together to develop a standard that will enable our industry to reduce carbon emissions and encourage investments in lower emission technology as part of the global effort to decarbonize,” said Greg Murphy, Executive Vice President, Nucor Corporation, and Chair of the GSCC.

“Steel is integral to the functioning of global economies, including clean energy infrastructure. The Steel Climate Standard is a simple and understandable benchmark for reducing our industry greenhouse gas emissions and provides a transparent means for decision makers to make informed decisions,” said Jeff Hansen, Vice President Environmental Sustainability, Steel Dynamics, and GSCC Board Member.

GSCC is one of several groups and companies advocating for a global standard. Some in the United States and Europe are promoting a standard that features a “ferrous scrap usage sliding scale” – one standard for steel made from traditional production processes and another for steel made from circular processes. “Creating a dual standard would allow high-carbon emissions steel to be prioritized over lower-carbon steel. This is a form of greenwashing and serves to discourage innovation and allows high-carbon steelmakers to postpone making changes in their production process,” said Phil Bell, President, Steel Manufacturers Association.

GSCC’s proposed standard is comprised of two main components: (1) product certification criteria that allows customers to know if the steel they are buying is on the glidepath to achieve the goals of the Paris Climate Agreement; and (2) a corporate-wide, science-based target-setting framework based on a 1.5-degree glidepath. The GSCC standard would measure all key GHG pollutants from Scope 1, 2 and 3 emissions. Producers would have to report independent verification of their emissions and reduction targets. The GSCC standard’s product intensity goals for the steel industry are based on the International Energy Agency’s (IEA) carbon budget for the iron and steel sector, which is aligned with the 1.5°C scenario for net zero emissions by 2050.

“Steel will also contribute to the transition to a greener economy with the production of electric vehicles, wind turbines, solar arrays and other clean technology products. The GSCC standard offers a clear future for steel in a decarbonized economy and aims to achieve the lowest overall emissions from the sector by 2050,” said Franc Cardona, Head of Public Affairs, CELSA Group and GSCC Board member.