Skip to main content

Most global primary steel production is done using coal-powered blast furnaces

A blast furnace is a large, vertical structure used for smelting iron ore to produce pig iron, which is then converted into steel.1 Around 70% of the world’s steel production is done using blast furnaces.2 Despite the increasing recognition that coal-powered blast furnaces are incompatible with global climate goals, over 70% of announced new steel production plants will use blast furnaces.3

Sources:​

Footnotes​

  1. Britannica, T. Editors of Encyclopaedia (2024, July 18). Blast Furnace. Encyclopedia Britannica. https://www.britannica.com/technology/blast-furnace ↩

  2. Olano, M. V. (2023, October 27). Chart: Here’s where the carbon-intensive steel industry is concentrated. Canary Media. https://www.canarymedia.com/articles/clean-industry/chart-heres-where-the-carbon-intensive-steel-industry-is-concentrated ↩

  3. Ferris, N. (2023, September 25). 70% of planned steel production projects are dirty blast furnaces. Energy Monitor. https://www.energymonitor.ai/sectors/industry/weekly-data-70-of-planned-steel-production-projects-are-dirty-blast-furnaces/ ↩