The Heavy Industry Low-carbon Transition Cooperative Research Centre (HILT CRC) welcomed the opportunity to contribute to the Department of Industry, Science and Resources (DISR) recent consultation paper: A Future Made in Australia: Unlocking Australia’s Green Iron, Steel, Alumina and Aluminium Opportunity.

Australia’s heavy industry sector is a significant contributor to the national economy, with an annual output of approximately $180 billion. The sector is also a significant contributor to Australia’s emissions: iron ore, steel, alumina and cement alone are responsible for around 9% of the country’s total CO₂ emissions. The global downstream processing of Australia’s resources also represents three times Australia’s entire direct emissions. Decarbonising these industries is therefore crucial for global climate efforts.

With its Future Made in Australia initiative, the Australian Government is recognising the transformative potential of green iron, steel, alumina and aluminium in achieving Australia’s emissions reduction targets, creating new jobs and maximising the economic and industrial benefits of the move to net zero. HILT CRC is working with government and industry to help de-risk and accelerate this transition. As part of this effort, the CRC provided a response to DISR’s consultation paper.

HILT CRC’s key messages in its consultation response included:

• Investment in decarbonising the global processing supply chains that use Australian ores offers potentially the largest impact Australia can make to emissions reduction on a global scale.
• The transition to green iron and steel production requires new production technologies, some of which are unique to Australian ores. Collaboration among government, industry and research organisations is essential to develop and derisk these technologies.
• Access to renewable energy and energy infrastructure is a significant challenge.

 

HILT CRC’s research portfolio addresses these challenges through its research programs:

• Program 1: Process technologies
• Program 2: Cross-cutting technologies
• Program 3: Facilitating transformation.

 

Across these programs, HILT CRC currently has 22 research projects underway involving our research, industry and government partners. These projects are supporting Australia’s efforts to realise its green metals potential.