Scope 1 CO₂ Emissions | Steelmaking by Process Step

Process Emissions Comparison

The so-called Scope 1 emissions include all greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions produced by a steelmaker.

They cover direct emissions made from plant and equipment owned or controlled by the reporting business. Examples include the off-gases that come from a blast furnace; or the emissions that may come from a slab reheat furnace. Most steps in the iron and steelmaking process produce some quantity of greenhouse gases. The table below lists typical scope one emission levels from different process steps.

Scope 2 emissions, which refer to indirect emissions from the generation of purchased energy, are excluded from the estimates shown below.

Scope 1 Emissions by Steelmaking Process

Steelmaking Step	CO₂ Output (t/t of Product)
Coke	0.794
Sinter	0.2
Pellet plant	0.057
Blast furnace / thm	1.219
BOF plant	0.181
DRI (natural gas)
DRI (coal)
Electric arc furnace – carbon steel
Electric arc furnace – alloy steel
Open hearth furnace	1.72
Slab, billet mill or ingot shop
Continuous casting
Plate mill
Hot strip mill
Cold rolling mill
Hot dip galvanising line
Organic coating line	0.003
Section mill
Bar or wire rod mill
Welded tube
Seamless tube

Source: MCI research. Data as of February 2025.

Note that table above shows indicative emissions values for typical operations, based on a compilation of public sources. Full analysis with identification of all sources used is available for purchase for US$250 + VAT. Actual output of GHGs may however vary significantly.

For example, bar mill or hot strip mill emissions may differ markedly if there is a high or low proportion of billet or slab hot charging. Similarly, coke plant carbon dioxide output much depends on whether by-product recovery is used. With recovery, typical CO₂ production is approximately 0.5 t/t of coke. Without recovery, this can increase to around 1.25 t/t of coke.

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