Indian government-run steel producer Steel Authority of India Limited (SAIL) is conducting trials for including green hydrogen in the production process, besides taking several other measures to reduce its carbon intensity, the company's chairman Amarendu Prakash said on Wednesday, September 17.
"SAIL is advancing its green steel journey through hydrogen-based steelmaking trials, carbon capture, utilization and storage (CCUS), biochar injection and renewable energy initiatives,” he said.
In December 2024, the ministry of steel published the definition of green steel with an aim to encourage the industry to bring down carbon emissions.
As per the ministry's taxonomy, green steel shall be defined in terms of the percentage greenness of steel, which is produced from the steel plant with CO2 equivalent emission intensity of less than 2.2 mt of CO2 per metric ton of finished steel.
If 1.6 mt of CO2 or less is emitted in the production of 1 mt of finished steel, it will be considered 5-star green-rated steel. On emissions in the range of 1.6 mt to 2 mt, the product will be given a 4-star rating, while those with 2.0 mt to 2.2 mt of emissions will be rated 3-star.
Prakash said that the company has initiated the next phase of its journey, where the upcoming projects will integrate green technologies, efficient logistics, and customer-centric solutions.
SAIL operates five integrated steel mills having a total installed capacity of over 21 million mt per year.
