A study examining the capture, transport, and long-term storage of carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions from hard-to-abate sectors has identified five hubs as potential storage options.
Phase one of the study, led by a group of steelmakers, assessed more than 3,000 potential locations and narrowed the list to five hubs in India (two), Indonesia, Malaysia, and Australia.
The sites were selected based on their potential performance across the full carbon capture, utilisation, and storage (CCUS) value chain, including capture, aggregation, transport, export to storage, and utilisation methods.
It focuses on reducing emissions within the steel sector, which is estimated to be responsible for between seven and 11% of global CO2.
The industry is emissions-intensive because it relies on coal both as a chemical agent to remove oxygen from iron ore and as a heat source in blast furnaces. Producing one tonne of steel emits roughly 1.9 to 2.3 tonnes of CO2.
CCUS can be retrofitted to existing blast furnaces and basic oxygen furnaces, allowing steelmakers to reduce emissions without constructing entirely new facilities.
More than one billion tonnes of steel production in Asia comes from blast furnace capacity that is relatively early in its lifecycle, according to Dr Ben Ellis, Vice President Marketing Sustainability at BHP.
“It is important for industry to progress technologies to lower the emissions intensity of existing steelmaking assets while new commercial pathways to decarbonise steelmaking are developed over time,” he said.
Global CCUS hubs as of 2022. Investment in CCUS almost tripled in 2022 to $6.4 billion, according to Bloomberg NEF ©The CCUS Hub
Phase two of the study will explore the engineering and commercial prospects of the five shortlisted hubs.
“As we transition to phase two, I am confident the work will progress effectively, providing greater clarity through detailed engineering, commercial analysis, and strengthening pathways toward large-scale deployment,” said Dr Arvind Bodhankar, Chief Sustainability Officer for ArcelorMittal Nippon Steel India.
The consortium taking part in the project includes ArcelorMittal Nippon Steel India, JSW Steel, Hyundai Steel Company, BHP, Chevron, and Mitsui. K Line recently joined as a shipping technology specialist.
Alongside CCUS, hydrogen-based steelmaking is also being developed as a longer-term decarbonisation pathway. Direct reduced iron processes using low-carbon hydrogen, when paired with electric arc furnaces, could reduce emissions by around 90%, according to estimates from organisations including the International Energy Agency and World Steel Association.
However, these routes require new infrastructure, large volumes of low-cost hydrogen, and access to renewable electricity, meaning deployment is expected to take longer compared to retrofitting existing assets with CCUS.
