Green Steel - for a clean future
Steel is everywhere – be it as cutlery in the kitchen drawer, in tin cans, car parts or impressive structures like the Empire State Building or the Eiffel Tower. Unfortunately, steel production is one of the main sources of CO2 emissions worldwide. In the EU alone, the steel industry was responsible for almost 6 percent of greenhouse gas emissions in 2021. To address this problem, emission reduction measures have already been identified. According to the requirements of the Paris Climate Agreement of 2015, emissions from the steel industry are to be reduced by about 30 per cent by 2030. For this reason, steel manufacturers are increasingly relying on climate-neutral produced steel, also known as Green Steel.
ANT AG is a forward-looking company that has been using waterjet cutting technology for innovative and environmentally friendly solutions for decades. This combines efficiency and sustainability in a simple and effective way. Long before terms like climate protection, clean production and ecological footprint were on everyone’s lips, ANT AG was committed to these important issues.
When steel becomes a valuable raw material
The steel industry contributes to 30 percent of industrial emissions in Germany. It is estimated that around 85 percent of CO2 emissions in the entire steel production process occur in the traditional blast furnace that produces pig iron from iron ore. The steel industry has the ambitious goal of producing exclusively climate-neutral steel by 2045. But with the current traditional manufacturing processes in the blast furnace, it will not be possible to achieve this goal. Innovative ideas and new processes in steel production are needed. Steel plays a crucial role in a more sustainable future because of its ability to be recycled several times. Using recycled steel scrap could reduce an estimated 1.6 tonnes of CO2 per tonne of steel saved. Steel is therefore one of the key pillars of a more sustainable society.
Green Steel: Simple recycling
Steel can be fully recycled after use without any problems or loss of quality. The German steel industry uses over 20 million tonnes of steel and iron scrap annually to manufacture high-quality products. Recycling steel supports the emission reduction goals of the Paris Climate Agreement.
Did you know?
The “Paris Agreement” was adopted on 12 December 2015 at the World Climate Conference. It commits 195 countries to mitigate climate change and promote a climate-friendly global economy. The main goals of the agreement are:
- limiting the increase in the global average temperature to 1.5 degrees Celsius compared to pre-industrial times,
- the long-term reduction of emissions and
- the channeling of financial resources in line with climate protection goals.
Germany already has a sophisticated system of collection, sorting and processing facilities for steel scrap. Green Steel also makes it possible to close the recycling loop for other materials such as glass, paper or plastics. Recycling steel plays a crucial role in sustainable and environmentally friendly production.
Our contribution to a more sustainable future
As a company that seems to have little to do with steel or Green Steel production, we want to make an important contribution to a cleaner future. In our second blog post on Green Steel, you will learn how our technology helps to recycle steel sustainably, properly dismantle the industry’s remnants and significantly reduce the carbon footprint through innovative technology.
Discover our sustainable portfolio
Do you have questions about waterjet cutting? Would you like to learn more about how we ensure more safety, sustainability and climate neutrality with our technology? Our sales team will be happy to answer all your questions.
