China commissions its first nearly zero carbon steel production line with 1 million tonne capacity

The production line, implemented at Baowu Steel’s Zhanjiang facility, is based on an advanced hydrogen based metallurgical electric smelting process that uses hydrogen as the primary reducing agent instead of conventional coking coal. This technology reduces reliance on fossil fuels in steelmaking while enabling a significant decrease in carbon emissions.

Under the project, direct reduced iron produced in a core hydrogen based shaft furnace achieves targeted metallization rates, while high efficiency green electric furnaces further optimize energy use. Compared with conventional production processes, the new line is reported to reduce carbon emissions by 50 to 80 percent.

Baowu Steel officials emphasized that the 1 million tonne nearly zero carbon steel production line has the potential to reduce more than 3.14 million tonnes of carbon emissions annually. This reduction was stated to be equivalent to the carbon sequestration capacity of approximately 2,000 square kilometers of forest area.