After committing to achieving carbon neutrality by 2040 in January, Maersk, the world’s largest shipping company, has joined SteelZero to use 100% net zero steel by 2040.
SteelZero, led by the global non-profit Climate Group, is a global project bringing together forward-thinking organizations to accelerate the transition to a net-zero steel industry. Companies joining the initiative are committed to procuring 100% net zero steel by 2050.
Maersk has pledged to achieve 100% net zero steel by 2040, wishing to encourage peers and others in the supply chain to follow its pace. The shipping giant has also set an interim goal of using 50% net zero steel by 2030, joining other eighteen companies, including Ørsted and UK steel stockholder Barrett Steel.
“Steel is an integral part of our value chain. We use it in our ships, containers, terminals, and warehouses and therefore, it is a pivotal part of our decarbonization efforts,” remarked Henriette Hallberg Thygesen, CEO of fleet & strategic brands at Maersk.
The steel sector is one of the greatest carbon dioxide polluters, accounting for around 7% of worldwide greenhouse gas emissions. In this difficult-to-abate sector, finding a low-carbon technology for primary steelmaking is critical for adhering to the 1.5°C roadmap, explained Thygesen.
He went on to say that joining SteelZero demonstrates the company’s commitment to achieving net zero steel production and accelerating scale-up.
A great number of over 700 vessels operated by Maersk are scheduled to be recycled in the next decade, with a large part being the post-panamax size ships, with steel making up around 90% of their weight.
According to Palle Laursen, senior vice president and chief technical officer, by 2028, global ship recycling quantities are expected to nearly double, and by 2033, they will quadruple.
“Steel users with net-zero emissions ambitions will increasingly recognize recycled steel as a feasible raw material. At Maersk we have both strong decarbonization ambitions and ships’ coming to end-of-life, which offer a great opportunity to reduce our Scope 3 emissions by driving circularity in the steel industry,” stated Laursen.
