Swedish steelmaker SSAB is spending €6 billion to switch from coal to hydrogen in its production process. The company is betting that EU climate policy will reward low-carbon steel with a price advantage. But proposed changes to the EU Emissions Trading System could weaken that edge by lowering the cost of carbon allowances for traditional producers. The article explains the tension between carbon pricing and industrial competitiveness in Europe's steel sector. SSAB's plan is one of the largest industrial decarbonization projects in Europe. It depends on cheap renewable hydrogen and a strong carbon price to make green steel cost competitive. If the EU reforms its ETS in a way that reduces the penalty on coal-based steel, the business case for SSAB's investment gets harder. The piece is worth reading for anyone tracking how carbon market design directly affects real world capital allocation in heavy industry.
