Masdar, EMSTEEL Produce Green Steel in UAE

UAE companies Masdar and EMSTEEL have begun producing green steel at a pilot project in Abu Dhabi.

The project, the first of its kind in the MENA region, uses green hydrogen instead of natural gas to extract iron from iron ore, a key step in steelmaking. The pilot is now fully operational, said clean energy developer Masdar and steel and building materials firm EMSTEEL.

The hydrogen made at the pilot has been certified by hydrogen code manager, Avance Labs.

“Green hydrogen is a vital element in global decarbonization efforts,” said Mohamed Jameel Al Ramahi, chief executive officer of Masdar.

“Even with all the renewables in the world, we cannot meet the decarbonization objectives for hard-to-abate sectors such as steel production. The success of this pilot is an important step in our ongoing efforts, in partnership with EMSTEEL, to achieve meaningful and effective decarbonization of the steel making industry.”

According to the companies, green hydrogen – produced from renewable sources such as solar and wind – has the potential to reduce CO2 emissions in steel production by up to 95%.

Rising demand for green steel offers “huge growth potential” for the UAE, they said.


Masdar and EMSTEEL are members of the Breakbulk Global Shipper Network.