We’re shaping a more ResponsibleSteel industry.
We have the opportunity to do things differently.
ResponsibleSteel is a global, not-for-profit organisation created to maximise steel’s contribution to a sustainable world. Working collaboratively with our members, we have developed an independent standards and certification programme for steel via a process that uses the ISEAL Codes of Good Practice as a reference. Together, we are setting the global standard for responsibly produced net-zero steel.
We’re at a pivotal moment in the steel industry.
According to ResponsibleSteel's calculations using data from RMI and the International Energy Agency (IEA), the steelmaking process, from the extraction of raw materials to the production of steel, accounts for 10% of global GHG emissions. We face a collective challenge to transform the industry, reducing global emissions while ensuring a just transition for workers and local communities.
We have over 160 members working to deliver on our mission to drive responsible steel production.
According to the IEA's Net Zero Emissions Scenario, we need to reduce steel industry emissions by at least 90% by 2050, compared to 2022.
We have over 90 ResponsibleSteel certified sites globally.
Over 260,000 workers are covered by ResponsibleSteel certification.
Over 30% of furnaces covered by ResponsibleSteel certification are EAFs.
This is the future of steel.
Our members are at the heart of our work.
ResponsibleSteel’s membership consists of representatives from across the steel value chain, including businesses, NGOs, trade associations, and other organisations with an interest in our mission. This means our standards are uniquely shaped by multiple perspectives, and their adoption requires the support of both business and civil society members. We encourage organisations globally to join us to create lasting impact for people and the planet.
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We have certified sites across the globe.
Latest news & events
The August edition of the ResponsibleSteel Newsletter is out!
August was a busy month for ResponsibleSteel, marked by the publication of our new report, From Data to Decisions: Comparable GHG Emissions Data for Steel Procurement, which explores how greenhouse gas emissions data can be used more effectively to support credible steel procurement decisions.
In this edition, we also share insights from our assessment of the International Production Standard against the Steel Standards Principles (SSP) Transparency Criteria, provide updates on preparations for our interoperability roundtable in London, and look ahead to Climate Week NYC, where ResponsibleSteel will be participating in discussions on steel decarbonisation and responsible sourcing.
Highlights include:
- Launch of our report From Data to Decisions: Comparable GHG Emissions Data for Steel Procurement
- Upcoming webinar exploring the report's findings and recommendations
- Assessment of the International Production Standard against the SSP Transparency Criteria
- Updates on interoperability and collaboration across the steel standards landscape
- ResponsibleSteel at Climate Week NYC
- New members and community updates
- Upcoming ResponsibleSteel audits and events
Read the full August newsletter here.
New report: Improving EPDs for GHG emissions data for steel procurement
As demand for low emission steel grows, buyers increasingly need reliable and comparable information to understand the emissions performance of the products they are purchasing. Environmental Product Declarations (EPDs) are an established tool for providing this information – but how effectively do they reflect genuine differences in steelmaking emissions?
ResponsibleSteel’s new report, From Data to Decisions: Comparable GHG Emissions Data for Steel Procurement, examines this question using real, verified site-level data from steelmakers.
What did we find?
The analysis demonstrates that GHG values reported at product level can vary significantly, even where products are assessed using the same Product Category Rule. Importantly, methodological choices – including system boundaries, approaches to co-product allocation and background datasets – can have a significant influence on reported emissions.
This means that relying on product-level GWP (Global Warming Potential1) values alone to identify and procure ‘low-emissions’ steel can produce misleading results, potentially rewarding methodological differences rather than genuine decarbonisation progress.
The report does not argue that EPDs are unsuitable for steel procurement. Rather, it highlights the importance of greater transparency, comparability and consistency in the way emissions information is calculated and communicated.
Towards more credible steel procurement
For markets to effectively recognise and reward genuine emissions reductions, buyers need confidence that the emissions data they use allows for meaningful comparison between products and producers.
The report sets out practical recommendations for strengthening the foundations of credible low-emissions steel procurement, including greater transparency around emissions calculations, clearer disclosure of crude steel emissions intensity and scrap content, and approaches that enable more meaningful comparison of steel products.
[1] Global Warming Potential (GWP) in an Environmental Product Declaration (EPD) is a standardised metric that measures how much heat a product's greenhouse gas emissions trap in the atmosphere, relative to carbon dioxide (CO₂).
The steel sector has an emissions data problem
By Dr. Alli Devlin (Decarbonisation Lead, ResponsibleSteel) and Melav Salih (Decarbonisation Advisor, ResponsibleSteel)
The steel sector needs emissions data that can be compared, not just data that can be reported.
That’s why it was a significant development when the Steel Standards Principles’ (SSP) Agreement on transparency in greenhouse gas emissions metrics for steel was published last December.
Established in 2023 by the Clean Energy Ministerial Industrial Deep Decarbonization Initiative (IDDI), International Energy Agency (IEA), ResponsibleSteel, Steel Breakthrough Agenda, World Steel Association and the World Trade Organisation, and launched at COP 28, the SSP now brings together over 65 endorsing organisations including standards bodies, steelmakers, industry associations and civil society.
December’s agreement sets out common disclosure points to improve comparability across steel standards and methodologies – ‘Transparency Criteria’ - which seven standards organisations and initiatives committed to aligning their reporting requirements to. This is an important first step towards achieving comparable GHG data disclosures across the steel landscape.
We recently tested the ResponsibleSteel International Production Standard against the Transparency Criteria, and found that our standards already meet nine of the thirteen criteria related to transparent reporting, on critical areas like system boundaries and co-product allocation. For the remaining four criteria, we have clear actions identified to increase transparency in our upcoming standard revision process related to:
- Ferrous scrap inputs
- Use of alternative fuels
- Use and allocation of market-/location-based electricity and contractual instruments, and
- Transmission losses from imported electricity.
This exercise highlights an important principle: transparency and comparability require standard setters to look critically at their own methodologies, not just call for alignment from others.
As demand for ‘low emissions’ steel grows through procurement, green building schemes and regulation, differences in system boundaries, allocation methods and datasets can have a major influence on reported emissions – sometimes obscuring the differences that matter.
Our call to the sector: standard-setters, EPD programme operators and certification bodies should assess and publish how their methodologies align with the SSP Transparency Criteria.
Alignment will only work if everyone is prepared to be transparent about where they stand and where they need to improve.
It also points to a bigger challenge: what will it take for site- and product-level steel emissions data to genuinely speak the same language?
If you’re interested in possible answers to this question, we are currently preparing a paper examining this question for EPDs and the ResponsibleSteel Decarbonisation Progress Levels (DPLs), which will be available soon.
Learn more about the ResponsibleSteel approach to GHG emissions accounting and classification
