SAIL has commissioned its first 0.18 MTPA Micro Pellet Plant at Rourkela Steel Plant, enabling the recycling of iron- and steelmaking waste into micro pellets for reuse in blast furnaces, improving resource efficiency and supporting more sustainable steel production.

The European Commission quietly published Correcting Regulation (EU) 2026/1740 on July 31, correcting technical errors in the CBAM default values published on December 31, 2025 — seven months after companies first raised complaints — with no press release and only a hidden note in the Official Journal. Critics note that despite ongoing errors and logical inconsistencies, DG TAXUD maintained that compliance obligations remained in force regardless, effectively making companies pay for official mistakes. The next substantive review of CBAM default values is scheduled by December 2027. Separately, a new PwC study concludes that in every modelled scenario, neither the blast furnace nor the DRI route for European primary steel production is economically viable beyond 2040, with green hydrogen availability critically insufficient — Salzgitter and Saarstahl have secured only 5–6% of annual requirements, while other major producers have abandoned decarbonisation plans entirely. PwC recommends that if European steel capacity is retained for security of supply reasons, scrap-based secondary steel production is the only economically viable basis for doing so.

Mercedes-Benz and Norsk Hydro have solidified their long-term partnership to accelerate the use of recycled aluminium across Europe. The initiative reinforces the automotive industry’s decarbonisation goals while reinforcing regional supply chains, thereby taking the EU a step closer to the Net Zero goals. As part of the expanded collaboration, Mercedes-Benz will become the first European automaker to use Hydro CIRCAL in serial production for its next generation of large electric vehicles (EV). The recycled aluminium contains at least 75 per cent post-consumer scrap, a significant increase from the previous minimum of 25 per cent. The material is produced from end-of-life vehicles, buildings and infrastructure through advanced recycling processes. Eivind Kallevik, President and CEO of Hydro, noted, the automotive industry’s requirement for “materials that can cut emissions without compromising quality, safety or performance.”

France has selected three projects totaling 161.4 MW of electrolysis capacity under the first round of its low-carbon hydrogen support scheme. The projects will receive a combined EUR 778 million in funding over 15 years to accelerate industrial decarbonisation. The selected projects include Elyse Energy's 61.1-MW eM-Rhone project, Engie Solutions H2's 5-MW Hydrozere project supplying hydrogen to an ArcelorMittal facility, and FertigHy's FertHySomme project, which received support for 95.3 MW of its planned 200-MW electrolyser. France aims to deploy 4.5 GW of electrolyser capacity by 2030 and 8 GW by 2035.

Constantia Flexibles has published a Low Carbon Aluminum white paper, introducing a framework that defines low-carbon aluminum based on Product Carbon Footprint (PCF) and independently verified mass balance certification. The company classifies low-carbon aluminum into two categories: ≤6.1 tCO₂e/t for primary aluminum produced with renewable electricity, and ≤4.5 tCO₂e/t for aluminum combining renewable electricity with recycled content. The initiative aims to improve carbon transparency in aluminum packaging and support customers' ESG and decarbonisation goals.

[SMM Aluminum Express News] Aluminium Dunkerque has reached a key milestone in its 3.0 MWp photovoltaic project after the construction works for its solar car park canopies were formally accepted by the company. The project comprises 12 photovoltaic canopies covering 13,641 m², with commissioning expected in the near term. Once operational, the system will generate nearly 3,200 MWh of renewable electricity annually for on-site self-consumption.

NLMK Group is a top-20 global and the No.1 Russian steelmaker. Its 2025 annual report tells a defensive one built on vertical integration and rock-bottom costs — holding volumes and liquidity under the combined squeeze of shrinking demand, record Chinese exports and a stronger rouble, while keeping decarbonization options open through a roadmap that reaches to 2050.

The EU Commission's latest ETS reform proposal (COM(2026) 616), presented as a competitiveness measure, adds further layers of funds, investment conditions, and reporting obligations on top of already complex ETS and CBAM rules without meaningful simplification. Free allocation for CBAM sectors is extended to 2038, while historic certificate surpluses accumulated by the steel industry remain entirely untouched — allowing European producers to meet current obligations with previously free-allocated certificates while importers must provide upfront CBAM capital. SMEs appear in funding programs but receive no exemptions or reserved quotas. The case of Saarstahl illustrates the asymmetry: the company benefits simultaneously from historic ETS surpluses, extended free allocation, decarbonisation subsidies, CBAM border protection, and steel tariffs, with over half of its EUR 4.6 billion hydrogen investment publicly funded. Meanwhile, Germany's 2026 industrial electricity price of around 16.7 cents/kWh has returned to 2014 levels, undermining the steel industry's persistent claims that energy costs are the sector's primary burden.

A written parliamentary question posed to the European Commission asked: "What monetisable compensation does the Commission envisage for downstream producers whose embedded costs originate upstream, and who do not qualify for the decarbonisation fund?" Commissioner Hoekstra's July 14 response offered no direct answer, pointing instead to the Temporary Decarbonisation Fund — designed primarily for large EU ETS installations — with a vague note that it "may also decrease associated downstream costs," with no obligation, guarantee, or figure attached. Critics note that large integrated steelmakers benefit from multiple layers of protection including tariffs, quotas, free ETS allowances, and decarbonisation funding, while import-dependent SMEs and downstream processors face rising procurement costs, CBAM obligations, quota cuts exceeding 45%, and heavy administrative burdens — with no cumulative impact assessment ever published by the Commission. Meanwhile, steel import quota data remains poorly updated, with the Commission confirming it will update TRQs only once daily with no real-time data, and declining to recognize the "Total awaiting allocation" figure as legally binding.

BHP said blast furnace decarbonisation remains crucial as over 70% of global steel output still uses the BF-BOF route. The company noted that EAF and DRI expansion faces scrap supply and iron ore quality constraints, while BF emissions can be reduced through recycling, hydrogen injection, CCUS and higher-grade raw materials. With new integrated steel plants costing around 4 billion USD and 85% of China and India’s BF capacity less than 20 years old, full replacement remains difficult in the near term.