Recent months have been packed with developments in the green steel market. Alongside regulatory changes such as the start of the definitive stage of the Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism in the EU, companies worldwide have reported progress on existing projects or announced new installations.
This article summarises key green steel market news from late 2025 to January 2026, tracked in the latest update of the Green Steel Projects Database. Further analysis of over 200 publicly announced plans and ongoing projects can be found in the Global Green Steel Profile.
Asia and Oceania
- In December 2025, Calix, an Australian environmental technology company, announced that Rio Tinto completed due diligence for a proposed 30,000 tpa hydrogen-based direct reduced iron/hot briquetted iron (DRI/HBI) pilot plant, paving the way for Rio Tinto’s $3 million financial contribution. This plant will utilize Calix’s 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 a fluidized bed.
- Green Steel and Iron (GISA) and Tempest Minerals (TEM) signed a binding agreement granting GISA the right to acquire the Remorse magnetite iron ore deposit project. GISA is considering an initial public offering to fund a 2.5 mtpa export-oriented HBI plant in Western Australia. A final investment decision is expected in 2027, with operations slated to begin in 2030. The plant is expected to run on natural gas, transitioning to green hydrogen when it becomes available and economically viable.
- In December 2025, Fortescue signed an agreement with Taiyuan Iron and Steel (TISCO), a subsidiary of China Baowu, to launch an industrial trial of hydrogen-based plasma iron and steel production. This technology is expected to be compatible with Pilbara ores and will require no sintering, pelletising, or coking, with a pilot plant capable of producing up to 5,000 tonnes of iron per year.
- The same month, China’s HBIS commissioned two industrial CCUS pilot projects at its new Tangsteel plant. According to HBIS, the first project captures blast furnace gases to produce bacterial proteins, while the second uses low-concentration CO2 fumes, dust and steel slag to produce construction materials.
- In October 2025, Baosteel’s Zhanjiang Dongshan completed a test of a new 220-tonne EAF designed to use DRI, hot metal and scrap to produce automotive-grade steel. In 2023, Zhanjiang steelworks launched a 1 mtpa DRI demonstration plant running on natural gas, coke oven gas and hydrogen.
- In December 2025, India launched its national CCUS roadmap, allocating over $11 billion for research and development, although no specific timeline was reported. Meanwhile, the Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry of India urged the government to implement incentives for hydrogen-based DRI production, waste heat recovery systems, captive renewable energy power plants, and scrap collection and recycling.
- In December 2025, ArcelorMittal announced three new renewable energy projects in India, representing a total nominal capacity of 1 GW (solar and wind). Electricity will be supplied to AM/NS India (Hazira steelworks), ArcelorMittal’s joint venture with Nippon Steel, and combined with the 975 MW of solar and wind capacity already installed in Andhra Pradesh will cover 35% of Hazira’s increased electricity consumption in 2028.
- In December 2025, Steel Authority of India Limited (SAIL), one of India’s largest integrated steel producers, partnered with Primetals Technologies to integrate hydrogen gas injection technology at its Bokaro blast furnace (BF). The company developing technology to use green hydrogen and carbon monoxide to produce DRI, with financing for a demonstration plant coming from the Ministry of Steel.
- The board of Tata Steel approved the start of engineering and regulatory process to set up a 1 mtpa HIsarna plant in Jamshedpur, to produce hot metal from iron ore using coal powder.
- Also in December, Xuan Thien (Vietnam) and Primetals Technologies signed an agreement for two EAF production lines of the future 9.5 mtpa Xuan Thien Nam Dinh green steel complex (7.5 mtpa + 2 mtpa phases), producing heavy plate and hot-rolled coil (HRC). According to initial schedule, Xuan Thien plans to begin production in June 2028 and complete the entire project by June 2030.
Europe
- In January 2026, Kurum International awarded Danieli the contract to build a new MIDA (Micromill Danieli) plant in Elbasan, Albania. This plant will produce 0.7 mtpa of bars and will include a 75-tonne scrap-fed EAF.
- In January 2026, Czech integrated steelworks Nová Hut (former Liberty Ostrava) announced an CZK 150 million ($7.3 million) investment in 2026, which includes preparation for the construction of a 1.5 mtpa EAF. The site’s BFs, steelmaking and coke plants are no longer in operation, while rolling units operate under tolling agreements.
- In January 2026, Iberdrola Germany completed a new solar plant with a capacity of 65 MW in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. The project is part of a 15-year power purchase agreement signed between Iberdrola and Salzgitter to supply 900 GWh of power over the period.
- The same month, ArcelorMittal signed a nuclear power production allocation contract with EDF. EDF will supply ArcelorMittal’s production sites in France with low-carbon electricity for 18 years, effective January 1, 2026.
- In November 2025, state-controlled Azerbaijan Metal Company signed a contract Sinosteel Equipment & Engineering Co. for a feasibility study for a 2 mtpa HBI plant in the Shamkir district of Azerbaijan. The HBI plant is expected to be commissioned by mid-2029, with an estimated cost of $700 million.
Middle East and North Africa
- In December 2025, Meranti Green Steel, signed an MoU with the Amnah Energy consortium for green hydrogen supplies for its 2.5 mtpa DRI/HBI project in Al Duqm, Oman. The consortium was awarded a land block in Al Duqm to develop 200,000 tpa production of green hydrogen. The final investment decision for the Duqm project is scheduled for mid-2026, with construction to follow immediately. The plant is scheduled to be commissioned by mid-2029.
- In January 2026, Meranti Green Steel announced that it had secured full offtake agreements for the first phase of its HBI plant in Oman. 1 mtpa will go to Thyssenkrupp Materials Trading, 0.25 mtpa to Interfer Edelstahl & Interfer Austria, with the balance going to Glencore and to Meranti’s steel plant in Rayong, Thailand for green HRC production.
- Also in January, reports indicated that Vale and its partners expect to invest around $5 billion in the first phase of a mega-hub in Al Duqm, Oman. The hub would produce iron ore concentrate and HBI with low embedded CO2 emissions. The land lease agreement with the Port of Duqm has been signed and the final investment decision is planned for 2026, with construction scheduled to begin in 2027.
North and South America
- Hyundai Steel plans to launch a pilot DRI plant at its Dangjin works, South Korea, in 2027 to test hydrogen technology before implementing it at a planned 2.7 mtpa natural gas/EAF facility in Louisiana, USA. The Dangjin plant has been producing hydrogen since 2016.
- In January 2026, it was reported that ArcelorMittal Dofasco postponed transition from BF/BOF to DRI/EAF steelmaking from 2028 to later years and that iron for the future EAF would be produced at the existing natural gas-based DRI plant in Contrecœur, Quebec, instead of building a new 2.5 mtpa hydrogen-ready DRI plant in Dofasco.
