The procedure to establish a group for developing indigenous technology for green steel has begun, a senior official informed the Press Trust of India.
"Steps have been initiated to form a consortium involving labs, IITs, steelmakers and equipment manufacturers to develop indigenous green technology for steelmaking, Nagendra Nath Sinha, the Steel Secretary said.
In June, the Steel Ministry had issued tenders under the National Green Hydrogen Mission, with a Rs 455 crore outlay, inviting industry participation. The fund will offer partial support for the project.
A consortium proposed under the leadership of the Institute of Minerals and Management Technology has evinced interest in piloting the country's first green steel making initiative, using 100% hydrogen based DRI production method, PTI noted.
The Steel Secretary said that the government has asked technology provider Danieli to cut the cost of the 0.5 million tonne hydrogen based DRI plant to Rs 400 crore, from the originally quoted Rs 800 crore, to make it more affordable to steel firms, PTI reported.
The government is also working on a deacarbonisation roadmap to cut the steel sector's carbon footprint, which accounts for 12% of the total emissions.
The plan includes increased hydrogen use and carbon capture technologies for steel production, PTI noted.
India aims to cut down carbon intensity in steel production by roughly 20% from the 2.5 tonnes of carbon per steel at the moment, PTI reported.