India announces formula for classifying green steel

NEW DELHI: India's steel ministry on Thursday announced a formula for defining 'green steel,' classifying it under three categories based on the quantity of carbon emissions per metric tonne of the alloy produced.

Steel produced with carbon dioxide emissions of less than 2.2 tonne per tonne of finished steel would be defined as "green steel," a ministry presentation released in New Delhi showed.

Steel produced with emissions below 1.6 tonnes per tonne of alloy would be classified as "five-star green-rated steel," the cleanest of the three.


Meanwhile, steel produced with emissions between 2 to 2.2 tonnes per tonne of the alloy will be classified as "three-star green-rated steel" - the least clean of the lot.

This threshold limit for defining the categories will be reviewed every three years, a government handout showed.

India, the world's biggest steel producer after China, has been working on a green steel policy in a bid to decarbonise procurement and production of the key construction material, amid a wider push towards cutting down greenhouse gas emissions.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has set 2070 as the target for achieving net zero emissions.

The country is also considering mandating green steel for government projects, steel secretary Sandeep Poundrik said on the sidelines of an event.