Draft National Steel Policy 2047: Industry Welcomes Push on Scrap Recycling, Value Addition and Decarbonisation
The Ministry of Steel has released the draft National Steel Policy: Vision 2047 for public comments, with suggestions due by 30 October 2026. It will replace the National Steel Policy, 2017.
The steel industry has said the draft will promote a circular economy (reusing steel scrap again and again) and value addition (making more high-grade, special steels in India instead of only basic steel).
The draft targets crude steel capacity of about 604 million tonnes (MT) by 2047, up from about 220 MT now, and per capita steel use of 302 kg by 2047.
On climate, it aims to cut the carbon emission intensity of steel from 2.54 to 1.54 tonnes of carbon dioxide (CO2) per tonne of crude steel by 2047, in line with India's net-zero goal for 2070.
For recycling, it plans to raise scrap use from about 36 MT in 2025-26 to about 123 MT by 2047, by expanding vehicle and ship recycling and using extended producer responsibility for old vehicles.
It also proposes support for the small, secondary steel sector, which has about 2,550 units and nearly 47% of current crude steel capacity.
National Steel Policy: India's Roadmap for the Steel Sector
A National Steel Policy is a long-term plan made by the Government of India for the steel industry. It sets targets for how much steel India should make and use, and lists the steps needed to get there. India has had steel policies in 2005 and 2017. The 2017 policy is now set to be replaced by a new one looking ahead to 2047.
The industry's comments are a response to this draft. They see the plan's focus on scrap, high-grade steel and lower emissions as a roadmap that makes Indian steel more modern and competitive over the next two decades.
Green Steel: Decarbonising Iron and Steel Making
Green steel is steel made with very little release of carbon dioxide, the main gas causing climate change. Normal steel making burns large amounts of coal in blast furnaces. Green steel uses cleaner options such as hydrogen made from renewable power, electricity from solar and wind, and recycled scrap melted in electric furnaces.
Using more scrap is one of the cheapest ways to cut steel emissions, because melting scrap in an electric furnace avoids most of the coal used in blast furnaces. That is why the draft's circular economy and decarbonisation goals support each other.
Circular Economy: Origin and Core Definition
A circular economy is a way of running the economy where things are used again and again instead of being thrown away. Products are designed to last longer, be repaired, be shared, and finally be recycled so that their materials become raw material for new products. The opposite is the linear economy, which follows a straight line: take resources, make a product, use it, and throw it away. The circular economy tries to "close the loop", so that waste from one step becomes input for another.
The draft steel policy puts scrap recycling at the centre of India's steel future, planning to more than triple scrap use by 2047 through vehicle and ship recycling and EPR for old vehicles. This is the circular economy applied to steel: old steel becomes new steel, which saves iron ore and coking coal and cuts emissions at the same time.
- Draft National Steel Policy: Vision 2047 released by the Ministry of Steel in October 2026; comments due by 30 October 2026; replaces the National Steel Policy, 2017
- Crude steel capacity target: about 604 MT by 2047 (about 220 MT now)
- Finished steel demand: about 505 MT by 2047; per capita consumption: 302 kg by 2047
- Steel exports target: 45 MT by 2047
- Emission intensity: from 2.54 to 1.54 tonnes of CO2 per tonne of crude steel by 2047
- Scrap use: from about 36 MT (2025-26) to about 123 MT by 2047, about 21% of projected crude steel output
- Secondary steel sector: about 2,550 units, nearly 47% of current crude steel capacity
- Crude steel production: about 170 MT in 2025-26 (89 MT in 2014-15)
- India imports about 92% of its coking coal
- Green Steel Taxonomy (12 December 2024): green below 2.2 tCO2e per tonne of finished steel; five-star below 1.6