The steel industry is embarking on a new green journey
At the end of 2025, the steel industry ushered in a highlight period with intensive implementation of multiple technological breakthroughs. China’s first 1-million-tonne near-zero-carbon steel production line was put into operation. The world’s thinnest “tearable steel” achieved large-scale mass production. Smart factories also gained national recognition. A series of key technological innovations are breaking the inherent label of high energy consumption and high pollution in the traditional steel industry. They are promoting the industry to fully enter a new stage of high-quality development featuring green low carbon, high-end and intelligence. They provide solid support for the construction of a modern industrial system.
Low-carbon metallurgy technology has achieved major leaps. It provides core support for the industry’s decarbonization. Recently, China Baowu Zhanjiang Base’s first 1-million-tonne near-zero-carbon steel production line was fully connected. This production line uses hydrogen instead of traditional coke as the core smelting raw material. It adopts the hydrogen metallurgy electric smelting process. Carbon emissions are reduced by 50% to 80% compared with traditional processes. It can reduce carbon emissions by more than 3.14 million tonnes per year. This is equivalent to reforestation of 2,000 square kilometers. The core equipment of the production line, the hydrogen-based shaft furnace, stably produces direct reduced iron with high metallization rate. The supporting large electric furnace can smelt 220 tonnes of molten steel at one time. It not only eliminates high-energy-consuming links such as sintering and coking, but also shortens the production process by 40%. It can also produce low-carbon steel that meets strict EU standards. This greatly enhances the international competitiveness of the products. This technological breakthrough not only frees China’s steel industry from deep dependence on traditional fossil energy, but also sets a new benchmark for global low-carbon steel smelting.
R&D of high-end materials has flourished in multiple areas. It accurately meets high-end downstream needs. In the special steel field, the world’s thinnest 0.015mm “tearable steel” has achieved full mass production. The daily output can reach about 3 tonnes. This kind of steel is less than one-fifth the thickness of an A4 paper. It ensures ultra-high purity through extreme process control. It is widely used in key components such as soft packs of power batteries for new energy vehicles and buttons of 3C digital products. It can not only increase battery capacity, but also extend the service life of equipment. At the same time, 4 new products developed by Shagang, including extra-thick steel plates for offshore wind power in polar environments and high-power density non-oriented silicon steel, have reached the international leading level. They are widely used in wind power projects, new energy vehicles and other fields. They perfectly meet strict requirements such as low temperature resistance, high strength and low iron loss. Shandong Iron and Steel’s technological breakthrough in high-alloy steel smelting is also impressive. Its built intelligent smelting model joint control system stably controls the recovery rate of key alloying elements above 95%. The product purity is significantly improved. It provides high-quality localized materials for aerospace, energy equipment and other fields.
Intelligent manufacturing technology has been deeply implemented. It reshapes a new ecology of steel production. At the 2025 World Intelligent Manufacturing Conference, Baoshan Iron & Steel Co., Ltd.’s “High-end Green Silicon Steel Predictive Manufacturing Smart Factory” was successfully selected into the first batch of national “Pioneer-level Smart Factory” cultivation list. It has become a benchmark for the intelligent transformation of the steel industry. The factory innovatively adopts the “AI-driven predictive manufacturing” model. It integrates historical orders and industry trends to predict demand. It completes production layout in advance. This shortens the product delivery cycle by more than 50%. 67 digital applications such as the digital twin control system and the blast furnace temperature prediction large model have been fully implemented in the factory area. They not only improve the efficiency of production anomaly disposal by 50%, but also significantly reduce power grid losses through technical optimization. The annual electricity savings are equivalent to the power generation of 4 Three Gorges Power Stations. It achieves the synergistic efficiency of intelligence and green development.
The synergistic effect of technological innovation promotes the comprehensive upgrading of the steel industry value chain. Low-carbon technology solves the environmental constraints of industry development. High-end materials expand market boundaries. Intelligent technology improves production efficiency. These three aspects empower each other to form a development synergy. From meeting the needs of infrastructure construction to supporting strategic emerging industries such as new energy and aerospace, the added value of steel products continues to increase. The industry’s development logic is undergoing a profound transformation from “scale expansion” to “value improvement”. Policy guidance and increased corporate investment in innovation have accelerated the transformation and application of technological achievements. A virtuous cycle of “R&D – mass production – iteration” has been formed.
The implementation of a series of technological breakthroughs demonstrates the innovative vitality and transformation determination of China’s steel industry. From the revolutionary breakthrough in low-carbon smelting, to the precise breakthrough in high-end materials, and then to the systematic upgrading of intelligent production, steel technological innovation is restructuring the industry development pattern. In the future, with the large-scale application of more innovative achievements, the steel industry will completely get rid of the label of traditional industry. It will support national economic development and ensure national strategic needs with a greener, more intelligent and higher-end posture, writing a new chapter on the road.