Indian steel industry’s move towards a reduced carbon footprint is likely to be gradual, owing to the age of blast furnaces used and the lack of consolidation in the sector, a report by consultancy firm Ernst & Young (E&Y) has said.
According to the report, Russia, China and India’s paths towards carbon reduction are likely to be more gradual than seen in the west as many of the regions’ blast furnaces are less than 15 years old, making replacement uneconomical right now.
Moreover, consolidation of the sector in China and India, two of the world’s largest steel producing countries, is below the global average with many small capacities operating with less efficiency, more pollutants and a lack of investment in new technologies, the report said.
Indian steel producers have struggled to obtain approvals to expand into greenfield projects and brownfield will continue to make up most of India’s new production capacities, and controlling emissions will be the central challenge to steel companies for many decades, the E&Y report said.