Turkish steel industry plans to focus on developments for transition to a green economy

At the EUROMETAL Steel Day & YISAD Flat Steel Conference held at the Marriott Asia Hotel in Istanbul on Thursday, April 27, Turkey's central bank senior official Ömer Kayhan Seyhun briefed attendees on the EU Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) and its possible impact on exports Turkey.

While stating that since the early 1990s there have been discussions about industrial carbon emissions that are detrimental to industry, Mr. Seyhun highlighted the decisions, actions and steps taken on international platforms on this issue since then. He stated that CBAM, which is one of the measures taken under the European Green Deal, is currently limited to the iron and steel, cement, aluminum, fertilizer and power generation sectors, while other sectors will be included in the regulation. in the coming period. EU countries plan to take into account the CBAM criteria when importing eligible products.

According to Mr. Seyhun, if Turkey does not take any action on carbon emissions, its emissions are expected to increase to 700 million metric tons in 2050, while in a zero-emissions scenario, its emissions will decrease to 132 million metric tons. . He also said that there are steps that Turkey needs to take for the green transition: he stated that the institutions that will take responsibility in this area need to be clarified, data collection should be a priority, and methods for calculating emissions should also be developed.

Referring to the possible impact of the green switch on Turkey's exports, Seyhun said European countries and the UK account for 46 percent of Turkey's exports and 27 percent of Turkey's imports. He stated that one-third of exports to Portugal and one-fifth of exports to Romania come from these industries. The Turkish central bank spokesman also said that the proportion of Turkish iron and steel industry's net sales revenue that goes to research and development is still only 0.1 percent, adding that to be competitive in export markets, it is necessary to focus on R&D, even if it is expensive.