[CISA: Continue to Promote Full Completion of Ultra-Low Emission Transformation for Remaining Steel Capacity]

China Iron and Steel Association (CISA) announced that Liu Jian, Secretary of the Party Committee and Chairman of HBIS Group Co., Ltd., had assumed the role of the new president of CISA.

The 14th General Meeting of CISA and the 1st Council Meeting of the 7th Session were recently held in Shijiazhuang. By election, Liu Jian became the president (rotating) of the 7th Council of CISA. In his inaugural speech, Liu Jian stated that green and low-carbon transformation is the only path for the steel industry to achieve high-quality and sustainable development. He emphasized adhering to the "dual-carbon" leadership, continuously advancing the "energy and carbon efficiency improvement project," and accelerating the comprehensive green transformation of the industry. It remains necessary to continue promoting the full completion of ultra-low emission transformation for the remaining steel capacity, further applying advanced technologies for pollution reduction and carbon reduction, and persistently advancing differentiated policy support for environmental performance grading in the steel sector.

According to CISA, as of month-end June, 299 enterprises had completed or partially completed ultra-low emission transformation and evaluation monitoring. Among them, 272 enterprises had completed the full transformation, involving approximately 924 million mt of crude steel capacity, with an investment per mt of about 466 yuan and an operating cost per mt of about 197 yuan. Compared with 2019, in H1 of this year, the key statistical enterprises saw down YoY by 51.4%, 47.7%, and 73.7% in chemical oxygen demand, ammonia nitrogen, and suspended solids per mt of steel in external wastewater discharge, respectively; and down YoY by 66.5%, 55.9%, and 60.2% in sulfur dioxide, particulate matter, and nitrogen oxides per mt of steel in external exhaust gas emissions.

Liu Jian pointed out the need to promote the shift from "dual controls on energy consumption and energy intensity" to "dual controls on carbon emissions," and to further carry out systematic work on energy and carbon efficiency improvement across the industry. Through the selection, promotion, and application of excellent energy-saving and carbon-reduction technologies, the industry's carbon efficiency level should be enhanced, fully achieving the national target of "increasing the average proportion of steel industry capacity reaching the current energy efficiency benchmark level by 20 percentage points by the end of 2028." It is necessary to continuously improve the construction of the EPD platform for the entire steel industry chain, expand the coverage of low-carbon steel standards, and promote mutual trust and recognition with upstream and downstream industries and international platforms. Enterprises should be guided to establish carbon asset management systems, strengthen their capacity to participate in the carbon market, and cooperate with the Ministry of Ecology and Environment in further research on quota allocation plans and accounting methods.