Part of 3. Questions to the Minister for Economy – in the Senedd at 3:05 pm on 31 January 2023.
Minister, we all accept the need to decarbonise our steel industry. While the funding being offered by the UK Government to Tata to move to electric arc furnaces is welcome, an alternative has emerged in the past few days. Scientists at the University of Birmingham have developed a process to radically reduce emissions from a traditional blast furnace. This technology converts carbon dioxide into carbon monoxide that can be reused in the iron ore reaction. In this process, the typically damaged carbon dioxide is turned into a useful part of the reaction, forming an almost perfect closed carbon loop, and reduces emissions by around 90 per cent. Minister, will you work with the UK Government, Tata and Birmingham University to explore further whether this approach could enable Wales to retain its sovereign steel production activity? Thank you.