SSAB wants to speed up the transition

This is the third year that SSAB is participating in the annual climate conference as part of Business Sweden's delegation. As leader of the green transition in the steel industry, SSAB is committed to working with key stakeholders to transition away from fossil fuels to a sustainable future.

Steel production accounts for about 7-9% of global carbon dioxide emissions. At the same time, there is a high demand for steel in the world. Transitioning the steel industry to reduce its CO2 emissions is essential to reach the goals of the Paris Agreement and to mitigate climate change.

“Our research and innovation and production of fossil-free steel can change an entire industry and its value chain. Now policymakers nationally and globally need to create the right conditions to support the steel industry’s green transition,” says SSAB Chief Technology Officer Martin Pei, who is attending the conference.

SSAB, together with mining company LKAB and energy producer Vattenfall, has developed fossil-free steel production in the HYBRIT project.

SSAB is calling for:

- Faster permitting procedures for green industrial projects and for needed infrastructure, such as fossil-free electricity production and expanded transmission grids.

- The need for a level playing field. Policymakers first priority should be to support R&D and up-scaling of new fossil-free technologies; not subsidizing already commercially available technologies.

- A common method on how to measure, report and verify carbon emissions. This will allow customers and consumers to compare the carbon intensity in steel products and support markets for low emission materials and products.

Lennart Håkansson

editor@northswedenbusiness.com