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According to JSW Steel Chairman
Sajjan Jindal, the company has set aside Rs 10,000 crore to expand the usage of
renewable energy to replace thermal power and other green efforts in an effort
to lessen its carbon footprint. Coal is used by a number of steel manufacturers
to produce thermal power for captive use.
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”We have earmarked Rs 10,000 crore
for investments to reduce our carbon emissions through various initiatives,
such as increasing the use of renewable energy to replace thermal power,
reducing our fuel rate through improved raw material quality via beneficiation,
and deployment of Best Available Technologies (BAT),” Jindal said.
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According to a Ministry of
Steel document, globally, the iron and steel industry accounts for around
8 percent of total carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions. In India, it
contributes 12 percent to the total CO2 emissions. Thus,
the Indian steel industry needs to reduce its emissions substantially
given the commitments made at the COP26 climate change conference.
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JSW Steel has already contracted for
1 gigawatt (GW) of renewable energy, of which 225 MW has become operational in
April 2022, and the balance will come on stream in
phases, Jindal said in his address to shareholders in the
company’s Annual Report for FY 2021-22 He further said the expansion of
the company’s Vijayanagar plant from 12 MTPA to 19.5 MTPA is
underway, and CAPEX cost is well below global benchmarks.
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The energy transition has provided a
significant opportunity for steel players, with huge investments being made in
renewable power generation, and transmission and distribution infrastructure,
all of which are steel-intensive. ”At JSW Steel, ESG (Environmental,
Social, and Governance) is core to everything we do. We have committed to
reducing our CO2 emissions intensity… by 42 percent by 2030, compared to the
base year of 2005, aligned with India’s Nationally Determined Contribution
(NDC),” Jindal said.
The company’s ongoing expansion projects are oriented towards producing
steel with higher use of renewable power, best-in-class digitalization to
achieve operational efficiency, and the best available technologies to reduce
associated CO2 emissions. ”We are consciously going beyond basic steel and are
consistently maintaining the share of VASP (value-added and special
products) in our product mix to over 50 percent,” he said