Making the steel of tomorrow today with ArcelorMittal

Steelmaking has been in a transitionary phase for over thirty years, moving from higher impact primary steelmaking to lower impact secondary steelmaking using scrap. Armed with some elementary knowledge of manufacturing processes and good intelligence of the local supply chain it’s possible to deliver low impact steel framed buildings today that can meet demanding embodied carbon targets.

But the key to a carbon neutral steel industry is in decarbonizing primary steelmaking which accounts for approximately 70% of global manufacture. In the last 12 months ArcelorMittal has taken significant steps to meet its target of a global carbon emissions intensity reduction of 25% by 2030 and 35% in Europe.

Over €10 billion of investment is required to achieve that interim goal and transform the way that we make primary steel, and over half has already been committed to projects. A first of its kind CCU plant has been inaugurated in Europe,  ground has been broken on a transformative new hydrogen ready steel plant, strategic acquisitions have been made and partnerships have been formed with the industrial players that can provide the renewable power infrastructure to enable the transition to low carbon steelmaking. But, importantly, it’s also possible to improve the carbon offer of secondary steelmaking too.

How do developers and designers choose partners that are really engaged with and can deliver on the Paris agreement, and move the steel industry and the construction sector forward together toward that common goal?

With Marion Charlier, PhD, Sustainability Lead and Walter Swann, Construction Engineer, ArcelorMittal