Over the years the Indian steel industry has reduced its energy consumption and carbon emissions substantially with the widespread adoption of Best Available Technologies in the modernisation & expansions projects. The average CO₂ emission intensity of the Indian steel industry has reduced from around 3.1 Tonne/tonne of crude steel (T/tcs) in 2005 to around 2.6 T/tcs by 2020.

To mitigate and adapt to the adverse impact of climate change India has introduced various measures under the umbrella of National Action Plan for Climate Change (NAPCC). National Mission for Enhanced Energy Efficiency (NMEEE) is one of the eight missions under NAPCC.

The Perform Achieve & Trade (PAT) is a flagship scheme under NMEEE. It is a market based mechanism for enhancing energy efficiency, under which specific targets of energy savings are set.  Those achieving the set targets are awarded Energy Saving Certificates (ESCerts), each equal to 1 Metric Tonne of Oil Equivalent. Those unable to meet their assigned targets are required to purchase ESCerts from the overachievers through a centralised online trading mechanism. The Indian steel industry is an important stakeholder under the PAT Scheme. The Steel sector has been able to achieve the total targeted energy savings from PAT Cycles PAT-I, PAT-II & PAT-III for the period from 2012- 20 to the tune of 5.5 MTOE (Million Tonne of Oil Equivalent) and corresponding CO₂ reduction of 20 Million tonne.

The steel sector has adopted the Best Available Technologies available globally, in the modernisation & expansions projects.

Further, the steel sector has been made an important stakeholder in the National Green Hydrogen Energy Mission to facilitate deployment of green hydrogen in the iron & steel making process. Under this initiative it has been proposed to set up two Pilot Plants under the Public & Private Partnership to explore the feasibility of using green H₂ in Direct Reduced Iron (DRI) production.

This information was given by the Union Minister for Steel Shri Ram Chandra Prasad Singh in a written reply in the Lok Sabha today.

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M.V./S.K.

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