Recent months have been full of events in the environmentally friendly steel market. Along with changes in legislation, such as the start of the final phase of the EU carbon regulation mechanism, companies around the world are reporting progress on existing projects or announcing new installations.
This article summarizes the main news of the environmentally friendly steel market for the period from the end of 2025 to January 2026, as tracked in the latest update of the database of environmentally friendly steel projects. A more detailed analysis of more than 200 publicly announced plans and ongoing projects can be found in the Global Green Steel Profile review.
Asia and Oceania
- In December 2025, Calix, an Australian environmental technology company, announced that Rio Tinto had completed a comprehensive evaluation of a proposed 30,000-ton-per-year (DRI/HBI) direct reduction iron production pilot plant, paving the way for a $3 million financial contribution from Rio Tinto. This plant will use Calix ZESTY technology, which uses renewable electricity (for heating) and hydrogen (as a reducing agent) to process low-grade iron ore without the need for granulation or fluidized bed.
- Green Steel and Iron (GISA) and Tempest Minerals (TEM) have signed a binding agreement granting GISA the right to acquire the Remorse magnetite iron ore project. GISA is considering an initial public offering to finance an export-oriented HBI plant with a capacity of 2.5 million tons per year in Western Australia. The final investment decision is expected in 2027, and the start of operation is scheduled for 2030. The plant is expected to run on natural gas and switch to environmentally friendly hydrogen when it becomes affordable and economically feasible.
- In December 2025, Fortescue signed an agreement with Taiyuan Iron and Steel (TISCO), a subsidiary of China Baowu, to launch industrial testing of hydrogen-based plasma cast iron and steel production. It is expected that this technology will be compatible with Pilbara ores and will not require sintering, pelletizing or coking, and the pilot plant will be able to produce up to 5,000 tons of pig iron per year.
- In the same month, Chinese company HBIS commissioned two CCU industrial pilot projects at its new Tangsteel plant. According to HBIS, the first project uses blast furnace gases to produce bacterial proteins, while the second uses low-concentration CO2 vapor, dust, and steel slag.
