Statistics on the steel industry

The World Steel Association's 2021 steel production statistics have been completed. This Brussels-based association is probably the most reliable source for comparing statistics on steel production. A total of 1,950.5 million tons of steel were produced in the world last year.

Number one, of course, is China, which accounts for just over half of the world's steel production. India is in second place and Japan is in third place, perhaps somewhat surprisingly. China's growth in the global steel market is illustrated by the fact that in 2021 its production was more than ten times higher than that of the USA, which ranks fourth in the world rankings. On the other hand, the USA has made a genuine effort to reduce carbon dioxide emissions from the steel industry, and more than 60% of its production uses recycled steel.

The world's largest steel company is the Chinese Company Baowu, followed by the multinational ArcelorMittal, headquartered in Luxembourg. The company operates in 60 countries, but the largest production is in India. Recently, the company has received negative attention for its environmental management, especially in Italy and Ukraine.

Japanese Nippon Steel, which has been in the top three for a long time, has dropped to fifth place. The company is known especially as a supplier to the automotive, machine and shipbuilding industries. It was surpassed by Posco, a South Korean steel producer. Of course, Hyundai and the Indian company Tata Steel are also large steel companies and important sources of export earnings for their home countries.

The largest steel producer in the European Union region is Germany, which ranks eighth in the world rankings. Italy has 11. Spain 16th and France 17. These four combined are 92.5 million tons, which would drop the US to fifth place.

Last year's larger producers than Germany were Russia, South Korea, and Turkey. A fantastic development is that of Turkey's 40.4 million tons of steel production, 22 million tons were made from recycled steel.

Ninth on the world list was Brazil and the tenth was Iran. It should be mentioned that the 20th was Egypt, and the 21st. Saudi Arabia, which might not immediately be perceived as strong steel producers. Finland is ranked 38th on the list.?With a production of 4.3 million tons. In comparison, the figure for Saudi Arabia is 8.7 million tons. Sweden was slightly ahead of Finland with its 36th production of 4.7 million tons.

The statistics for 2022 and -23 will be interesting. The relative share of China and India will rise further. The crisis in Ukraine is having a significant impact on Europe, to which raw materials have been imported from Ukraine and Russia. Due to the rise in gas prices, German steel producers have already announced that they will reduce production in the autumn. Imports from the Far East are a likely option to make up for the shortfall in steel produced in Europe.

The production of fossil-free steel, launched in Europe, began last August. It seems that Europe and the USA are making serious efforts to minimize emissions from the steel industry. In these areas, efforts are also being made to abandon old production facilities that do not have the potential to reduce emissions. In the future, when fossil fuel-free steel production is launched on a large scale, the situation of world steel production may change relatively quickly. Of course, consumers must first accept the difference in price. The aim of the Government Program for Finland (2019) is for Finland to be carbon neutral by 2035 and the first fossil-free welfare society.

Steel production is responsible for 7.2% of global carbon dioxide emissions, according to Climate Watch, The World Resource Institute 2020. In addition, coal mining causes 1.9% of emissions. 20% of all coal produced goes to the needs of steel production. These are averages from the whole world. Steel production accounts for 25–30% of China's carbon dioxide emissions.

Now, in Europe, several countries are in the throes of unprecedented heat, and climate change is back on the agenda as the coronavirus news has disappeared from the headlines. According to the Global Energy Monitor, the world has currently 432 new planned or already underway new coal mines. 3/4 of these are in four countries, which are: China, India, Australia, and Russia. Australia is the world's largest coal producer and the country's entire energy economy is based on coal. Australia also exports coal to Asian countries. The mining projects of the four countries mentioned all involve state guidance. It therefore seems extraordinary that the climate target has not been respected. If the planned mines are opened, the goal of the Paris Agreement on climate change will not be achieved.

The statistics in question do not show different steel grades. A possible future trend is that more expensive grades are produced in Europe and the USA in a more environmentally friendly way, and China and India in particular produce cheaper steel products using traditional methods. The new technologies then proceed pre-developed for large companies in the Far East. Still, the climate is common.