Green transformation - the story of the "big guys" in the steel and cement industry

In the effort to transform green and develop a circular economy, many large, leading enterprises have quickly changed their mindset, quickly caught up with long-term strategies and achieved substantial results.

The greening story of the "big guys" in the steel and cement industry is a practical proof of this direction.

Hoa Phat Group's modern steel production line helps collect excess heat to generate electricity.

Choose closed loop technology

Blast Furnace No. 1 of the Hoa Phat Dung Quat Iron and Steel Complex, belonging to Hoa Phat Group, is one of the five blast furnaces of the Complex operating in a closed-loop model, making Hoa Phat's production activities increasingly "green".

According to Mr. Ho Duc Tho, Deputy Director of Hoa Phat Dung Quat Steel Joint Stock Company (Hoa Phat Group), since 2007, when investing in large steel complexes, the company has allocated 30% of the total fixed capital of the project to environmental issues, choosing modern production lines from G7 countries with closed-loop technology, friendly, saving natural resources. Thanks to that, the company optimizes production, recovers all excess heat in coke smelting, and utilizes excess coal gas in iron and steel smelting as fuel for boilers to generate electricity.

In July 2019, one year after installing the first generator, the plant's power output met the steel production needs of the entire complex. Cumulatively, power output has also increased rapidly over the years and reached the 5 billion kWh mark in September 2022, followed by the 10 billion kWh mark in February 2025. When implementing the Hoa Phat Dung Quat 2 project, the company continued to invest in the second residual heat power generation line. Accordingly, Thermal Power Plant No. 2 has a capacity of 240 MW, including 4 generators of 60 MW, bringing the total power generation capacity of the entire complex to 600 MW. With a similar solution, in the first half of this year, the self-consumption power output supplied to the Hoa Phat Hai Duong Iron and Steel Complex under the Group reached 358 million kWh. In the first 6 months of 2025, the total electricity generation of thermal power plants in the Hoa Phat Dung Quat Iron and Steel Production Complex and the Hai Duong Iron and Steel Production Complex reached more than 1.8 billion kWh, helping Hoa Phat to be self-sufficient in about 90% of electricity for steel production, saving nearly 3,500 billion VND.

According to Mr. Ho Duc Tho, the residual heat power generation project not only helps save energy effectively but also contributes significantly to the strategy of reducing greenhouse gas emissions, aiming for carbon neutrality. "This is a sustainable solution, utilizing the residual heat source in the steel production process to generate electricity without using fossil fuels, contributing to reducing the pressure on the national grid, especially during the hottest months," said Mr. Ho Duc Tho.

Persistent green growth strategy

In late July, SCG Cement Building Materials Vietnam Co., Ltd. (SCG) announced that 19 of its main cement product lines in Vietnam have officially achieved the “Environmental Product Declaration” (EPD) certification according to international standards. This is the “sweet fruit” of the comprehensive green growth strategy that SCG has consistently pursued over the years, focusing on optimizing technology, reducing carbon emissions and making product life cycles transparent, aiming for a green and sustainable building materials industry.

Mr. Burin Udomsub - General Director of SCG Vietnam, shared: “SCG has proactively led the trend by expanding its green product portfolio, in which cement continues to be a strategic product, concretized by applying international green standards such as EPD. 19 main cement lines with EPD certification not only help customers easily choose environmentally friendly materials but also enhance brand reputation in both domestic and international markets.”

To meet the strict standards of EPD, SCG has applied many synchronous solutions to protect the environment and reduce carbon emissions in production. The company's cement factories are invested in modern technology, optimizing operational efficiency and limiting environmental impact. Notably, the waste heat recovery system has been applied since 2014, helping to utilize about 30% of the heat generated during the production process to regenerate electricity. This solution helps save about 60 million kWh of electricity per year - reducing about 33,807 tons of CO₂ compared to production from conventional sources.

At the same time, SCG factories are also promoting the use of biomass to replace coal in the clinker firing process, with a replacement rate of 30%. This helps reduce the need for about 90,000 tons of coal per year - equivalent to a reduction of about 157,715 tons of CO₂. In addition, the application of high-quality clinker combined with modern mixing technology also helps improve efficiency and significantly reduce the amount of CO₂ emitted, estimated to reduce about 141,575 tons of CO₂ per year. Thanks to these improvements, SCG is now able to reduce carbon emissions by up to 20% compared to conventional cement production. Specifically, each ton of cement produced using SCG's current technology can help reduce the amount of CO₂ equivalent to the absorption capacity of 12 mature trees within a year.

Green transformation for businesses is a revolution, first of all starting with awareness and choosing the right strategic investment direction. Reality shows that, despite facing financial, technological and human difficulties, especially for small and medium enterprises, when changing their mindset, businesses will realize that greening brings sustainable values to the community and the business itself in the long term.

Source: https://hanoimoi.vn/chuyen-doi-xanh-cau-chuyen-cua-cac-ong-lon-nganh-thep-xi-mang-713149.html