Groups back Australia’s signing of Glasgow Breakthrough green steel initiative

Leading industry and civil society groups headed by new energy think tank Beyond Zero Emissions have backed Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison’s signing of the Glasgow Breakthrough protocol to decarbonise steel.

The Glasgow Breakthrough, announced at the COP26 climate talks, is a commitment to work together to accelerate the development and deployment of the clean technologies and sustainable solutions needed to meet our Paris Agreement goals across key sectors: steel, power, hydrogen, agriculture and road transport. Steel accounts for about 7 per cent of global greenhouse gas emissions and is one of the more challenging sectors to decarbonise.

More than 20 countries have signed the Breakthrough on steel, including lead country the United Kingdom, the United States, the European Union, Australia, Japan and South Korea, representing more than 30 per cent of the steel market.

Beyond Zero Emissions Chief Strategy Officer Sanaya Khisty said: “This is a great step for Australia to reach its potential as a green steel export powerhouse. We have the raw resources in iron ore and plentiful renewable energy resources to turn it into steel.

“Our Export Powerhouse report shows that Australian green steel exports could be worth $83 billion by 2050 if the Australian Government introduces the right policy settings to attract the big investment needed.

“The government needs to set ambitious clean export targets, turbocharge our regional industrial heartlands into Renewable Energy Industrial Precincts, and establish a Supergrid Deployment Authority to power them.”

The Breakthrough speaks to the need for near-zero emission steel as the preferred choice in global markets, with efficient use and near-zero emissions steel production established and growing in every region by 2030.

International action through the Glasgow Breakthrough could reduce the first movers’ risk for companies willing to decarbonise if government signatories agree to similar decarbonisation timetables and announce national policies to assist with implementation.

Earlier the groups had written to the leaders of Australia, Japan and South Korea encouraging them to sign the Glasgow Breakthrough. They are listed below by country:

Australia: Beyond Zero Emissions, Green Building Council of Australia, Carbon Market Institute, Australian Conservation Foundation, Climate Action Network Australia, Greenpeace Australia and Pacific
Japan: Kiko Network, WWF Japan
Republic of Korea: Korean Federation for Environmental Movement (Dangjin, Kwangyang and Pohang branches), Solutions for Our Climate
International: Green Alliance, Greenpeace East Asia (Japan and Korea), Market Forces, Mighty Earth

For more information visit racetozero.unfccc.int/system/glasgow-breakthroughs/