It’s time to get serious about the environmental impact of producing steel and aluminium. Manufacturing these two key industrial metals accounts for over 10% of all the world’s direct emissions from use of fossil fuels. By 2050, the global demand for steel and aluminium – foundation materials and the building blocks of modern life – is expected to be double the level of 2012.

Clearly this is a conflict and fundamental change is needed.

With this in mind, we have announced our ambition to become carbon neutral by 2030 – or as we call it, CN30.

This does not mean that we will have no emissions, or indeed that we will abandon traditional practices overnight.

Experience has taught us that only a mixed model can work – transitioning blast furnaces which we will replace with electric arc furnaces over time, investing in new electric arc furnaces, and piloting new clean technologies.

This will require strategic longterm thinking and it presents an opportunity for a change in mindset.