voestalpine Steel Division awarded ResponsibleSteel Certification

15th November: ResponsibleSteel is delighted to announce that one of its first steel producer members – Steel Division of the voestalpine Group – has successfully passed an independent audit against the ResponsibleSteel Standard – the global sustainability standard for the steel sector.

voestalpine – a globally leading steel and technology group with a unique combination of materials and processing expertise – has been a member of ResponsibleSteel since 2019 – and has been instrumental in helping to develop the ResponsibleSteel Standard over the past three years.

The ResponsibleSteel audit process enables each steel making site to prove that its production processes meet rigorously defined standards across a broad range of social, environmental and governance criteria including:

• Climate change and greenhouse gas emissions
• Water stewardship and biodiversity
• Human rights and labour rights
• Community relations and business integrity

The Standard is based on 12 principles with a variety of criteria and underlying requirements. To be awarded ResponsibleSteel Site Certification, each site has to undergo a detailed third-party audit, including an on-site visit, interviews with internal and external stakeholders, an expert Assurance Panel reviewing the audit report and an independent Certification Committee making the final certification decision.

Anne-Claire Howard, ResponsibleSteel CEO said: “I am delighted that voestalpine has been awarded certification for their Linz-based Steel Division in Austria. The ResponsibleSteel Standard, created by the steel sector’s only truly global multi-stakeholder initiative, contains a very exacting set of ESG criteria which we hope gives business and consumers confidence that the site at which the steel is being produced is operated responsibly.”

“I would like to congratulate the teams at voestalpine who supported the development of the ResponsibleSteel Standard and are now able to see it implemented. We look forward to continuing to work together on the next phase of our journey – Steel Certification.”

voestalpine has drawn up an ambitious phased plan for green steel production (greentec steel): Using a hybrid technology and electric arc furnaces would allow CO2 emissions to be reduced by around 30% in a first step to 2030. Over the long term, the goal is to successively increase the share of green hydrogen used in steel production, arriving at carbon-neutral steel by 2050. Over the past decades voestalpine has already reduced air emissions and energy consumption to the minimum technologically possible. The group has set the global benchmark in this field.

To achieve certification, voestalpine was audited by LRQA, formerly part of Lloyd’s Register, – one of the world’s leading providers of business assurance services. Paul Butcher, LRQA CEO said:
“As business leaders, we are all striving to make our operations more sustainable and to achieve these changes at pace and at scale. ResponsibleSteel certification is helping to ensure that across the steel sector, its standard is driving sustainability strategies that are as relevant, effective and

impactful as they can possibly be. Congratulations to voestalpine for living up to their slogan “one step ahead” and becoming one of the first international companies to achieve ResponsibleSteel certification for their Linz operations.”

In 2022, ResponsibleSteel will launch additional requirements for the certification of steel products, which will include stringent requirements for input materials supply chains and greenhouse gas emissions intensity.

ENDS

About ResponsibleSteel
ResponsibleSteel is an international, non-profit multi-stakeholder membership organisation. Businesses from every part of the steel supply chain, civil society groups, associations, and other organisations with an interest in a sustainable steel industry from anywhere in the world are welcome to join. To view the ResponsibleSteel membership list visit: https://www.responsiblesteel.org/about/members-and-associates/

ResponsibleSteel’s vision is that steel’s contribution to a sustainable society is maximised. Its mission is to enhance the responsible sourcing, production, use and recycling of steel by:

• Providing a multi-stakeholder forum to build trust and achieve consensus;
• Developing standards, certification and related tools;
• Driving positive change through the recognition and use of responsible steel.
• The ResponsibleSteel Standard is designed to support the responsible production of steel, as a tool for the achievement of ResponsibleSteel’s vision.

Find current issued certificates and their public audit summaries here.

For more information about ResponsibleSteel please visit: https://www.responsiblesteel.org/

The voestalpine Group
In its business segments, voestalpine is a globally leading steel and technology group with a unique combination of materials and processing expertise. This global Group comprises about 500 Group companies and locations in more than 50 countries on all five continents. It has been listed on the Vienna Stock Exchange since 1995. With its top-quality products and system solutions, it is a leading partner to the automotive and consumer goods industries as well as the aerospace and oil & gas industries; it is also the world market leader in railway systems, tool steel, and special sections. voestalpine is fully committed to the global climate goals, and its greentec steel program represents a clear plan for decarbonizing the production of steel. In the business year 2020/21, the Group generated revenue of EUR 11.3 billion, with an operating result (EBITDA) of EUR 1.1 billion; it had about 48,700 employees worldwide. www.voestalpine.com