Steel

Summary of Steel Task Force Action Plan

Steel is used in every aspect of our lives: in buildings, bridges, automobiles, trucks, food containers, medical devices, and more. The aggregate amount of carbon dioxide (CO₂) emitted from the global steel industry has reached roughly two billion tons annually and Partner countries account for more than 60% of global steel production. The Steel Task Force therefore has significant potential to address CO₂ emissions and conserve energy by sharing information, identifying key opportunities, breaking down barriers, and cooperating to implement state-of-the-art and cost-effective clean technologies. The Steel Task Force has initially developed six projects and activities toward making steel production cleaner and more efficient.

U.S. Task Force Members 
Steel Task Force Summary of Action Plan and Projects   PDF version 10/31/06
Steel Task Force on the APP International Website

---

Sharing Best Practices in Cleaner Steel Production

Sharing technical and performance data among Partner countries will enable the establishment of appropriate metrics for measuring progress. The Partners will cooperate on projects targeted to: (1) identify effective technologies and equipment; (2) review the current status of adoption of these technologies, energy efficiency indices, environmental indices, and recycling rates; (3) identify energy savings and clean technology options for facilities currently facing barriers to the implementation of these technologies, and (4) examine the potential reduction of CO₂ emissions in the steel sector.

Transforming Markets for Clean Steel Technologies

Addressing market barriers to the implementation of clean technologies is central to the work of the Steel Task Force. Such barriers include intellectual property issues, trade practices and policies, a lack of capital and financing, regulatory issues, and a lack of incentives. The Task Force has drafted and will soon publish a “State-of-the-Art Clean Technology Handbook” that will provide decision makers with access to an accurate and up-to-date description of technology options. Such information-sharing efforts are intended to generate market opportunities for clean technologies.

Facilitating Investment in Cleaner Steel Production

Partner countries present significant opportunities for investment in clean technologies and processes. India has identified fifteen steel production technology projects for Partner country participation. These candidate projects include heat recovery from hot blast furnace stoves, exhaust, flues, energy consumption and emission control in sponge iron plants, and the recycling of steel plant dust and sludge using rotary hearth furnaces.

---

Summary of U.S. Led Steel Projects

A State of the Art Clean Technology Handbook to Document Technologies and Practices for Saving Energy and Reducing Environmental Impacts in the Steel Industry

Participating Organizations: U.S. Department of State, U.S. Department of Energy – Industrial Technologies Program

This project developed a State-of-the-Art Clean Technologies Handbook for the Steel Task Force to document technologies and practices for saving energy and reducing environmental impacts in the steel industry. This project is complete and the technology handbook is in use in all APP countries. (Project Complete) The technologies are being adopted by steel plants in India.