Australian miner BHP Billiton has announced that it has signed a memorandum of understanding with Japanese steelmaker JFE Steel, to invest up to $15 million and jointly study technologies and pathways capable of reducing greenhouse gas emissions from the integrated steelmaking process.
The five-year partnership will be funded under BHP’s $400 million Climate Investment Program and will focus on the role of Australian raw materials to help to increase efficiency and reduce emissions from the blast furnace and direct reduced iron steelmaking routes. Throughout the collaboration the two companies will also share knowledge on reducing carbon emissions across the steel value chain. BHP Billiton aims to reduce carbon emissions by 30 percent by 2030.
“This partnership with JFE demonstrates a joint commitment to make our activities more sustainable through collaboration and technological improvement. This work will support and help progress Japan’s carbon neutral ambitions by 2050,” Vandita Pant, BHP’s chief commercial officer, said.
In 2020, BHP Billiton also invested $35 million for collaboration with Chinese steelmaker China Baowu with the aim of reducing greenhouse gas emissions, as SteelOrbis previously reported.