Steel - the road forward
Nicholas Walters

Steel: A key driver of the world’s economy

Steel is everywhere in your life

Sustainable steel: steel at the heart of the green economy

Life Cycle Assessment (LCA):
New solutions for new times

Environmental impact: use phase often dominates
% contribution of each life cycle phase
Raw materials Material production
Manufacturing Use phase End of life
 The use phase of products often has the greatest environmental impact
 Aim of regulations: to reduce use phase impacts
 Steel industry involvement to improve use phase
 Material production and end-of-life become more important
 Move to lighter weight, higher strength steels
6

Environmental impact: use phase often dominates
% contribution of each life cycle phase
Raw materials Material Manufacturing Use phase End of life production
 The use phase of products often has the greatest environmental impact
 Aim of regulations: to reduce use phase impacts
 Steel industry involvement to improve use phase
 Material production and end-of-life become more important
 Move to lighter weight, higher strength steels
7

Global economic trends

Global growth expected flat in 2013 but developing economies outlook improving
Global GDP developments (%, Real 2005 USD billions)
EU27
NAFTA
S.America
CIS
Africa
Middle East
2009
-4.3
-3.2
-0.3
-6.8
2.7
1.3
Asia
Global
1.8
-1.9
Source: Global Insight (January 15, 2013), worldsteel
2010
2.0
2.6
6.0
4.9
4.7
5.9
7.7
4.2
2012
-0.2
2.3
2.3
3.6
5.0
3.3
4.9
2.6
2013
0.1
1.9
3.3
3.6
4.4
2.2
4.7
2.5
9

Emerging markets drive steel demand at the margin
0,6
0,4
0,2
0,0
2000
2005
2010
2012
GDP
78%
75%
70%
69%
Developed
Structure of real GDP & Apparent steel use
ASC
56%
40%
24%
Developing ex China
GDP
18%
20%
22%
ASC
27%
26%
31%
GDP
3.6%
5.0%
7.6%
23% 23% 32% 8.5%
Source: Global Insight & worldsteel
Global apparent steel use (Billions of tonnes, finished)
1,6
Developing ex China China Developed
1,4
1,2
1,0
China
ASC
16%
33%
45%
45%
 2012 another record year for apparent steel use
 China’s share of global demand at peak levels
0,8
Source: worldsteel
10

Other key trends shaping the industry

Demographics and its impact on demand
Source: United Nations, worldsteel
12

Urbanisation trends indicate concentration to larger cities
Distribution of urban population by type of city:
1970 2010
Source: United Nations
13

Developing regions more steel intensive in important use sectors
60%
50%
40%
30%
20%
Developing Developed
10%
0%
Construction
Source: worldsteel
Industrial goods Consumer goods
 Urbanisation trends in developing countries contribute to significantly higher steel intensity vis-a-vis developed countries.
 While developing countries are less steel intensive in both industrial and consumer goods.
14

What future for the Chinese automotive sector?
15

Volatility of raw materials
16

Steelmaking capacity
Source: OECD
17

Changes in technology
18

The future

Design requirements
20

Efficient and optimised production processes
21

Sustainability must apply over the life cycle of steel
- Not possible without supply chain collaboration
22

worldsteel.org