Leading business and civil society organizations, led by the new energy think tank Beyond Zero Emissions, have welcomed Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison’s signature of the Glasgow Breakthrough pact to decarbonize steel. The Glasgow Breakthrough announced at the COP26 climate talks, is a commitment to collaborate to accelerate the development and deployment of clean technologies and sustainable solutions required to meet our Paris Agreement goals in key sectors including steel, power, hydrogen, agriculture, and road transportation. Steel accounts for around 7% of worldwide greenhouse gas emissions and is one of the more difficult sectors to decarbonize.
More than 20 nations, including the lead country, the United Kingdom, the United States, the European Union, Australia, Japan, and South Korea, have signed the Steel Breakthrough, representing more than 30% of the global steel market. “This is a tremendous step for Australia to achieve its potential as a green steel export powerhouse,” said Sanaya Khisty, Chief Strategy Officer of Beyond Zero Emissions. We have raw materials in the form of iron ore and an abundance of renewable energy resources to convert them into steel.
“According to our Export Powerhouse research, Australian green steel exports may be valued $83 billion by 2050 provided the Australian Government implements the appropriate policy settings to attract the large investment required.” The government should set aggressive clean export objectives, transform our regional industrial heartlands into Renewable Energy Industrial Precincts, and create a Supergrid Deployment Authority to power them.”
The Breakthrough emphasizes the importance of near-zero emission steel as the preferred choice in global markets, with efficient usage and near-zero emission steel manufacturing established and developing in every region by 2030. If government signatories agree to identical decarbonization deadlines and declare national initiatives to assist with execution, international action through the Glasgow Breakthrough might lessen the risk of first movers for enterprises eager to decarbonize.
Previously, the organizations had written to Australia’s, Japan’s, and South Korea’s leaders, urging them to sign the Glasgow Breakthrough. They are listed alphabetically by nation below:
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
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