Japanese Nissan Motor and Kobe Steel have announced that Nissan plans to use Kobenable Steel for Nissan models from January 2023 onward. Kobenable steel, commercialized by Kobe Steel, significantly reduces CO2 emissions in the blast furnace process. Kobe Steel will also supply Nissan with aluminum sheets made from green-aluminum raw materials. This will be the first time Kobenable Steel will be used in mass-produced vehicles. Nissan models will use Kobenable Premier, which reduces 100% of CO2 emissions during manufacturing through the mass-balance method*3. The specific amount of steel to be used by Nissan will be determined through further discussions. Nissan aims to achieve carbon neutrality throughout the entire product life cycle by 2050. Since approximately 60% of a vehicle's weight is made up of steel parts and around 10% of its weight is made up of aluminum parts, the use of green steel and green aluminum is a very effective way to reduce CO2 emissions during parts manufacturing, which is part of the vehicle's life cycle. Kobe Steel’s low CO2 Kobenable Steel was adopted by Toyota Motor in June 2022 as a material for automobile components. Toyota has employed Kobenable Premier, a steel product with 100% reduction in CO2 emissions during manufacturing, for the suspension members of its hydrogen engine-equipped racing vehicle Corolla. Since May 2021, Toyota has been participating in the Super Taikyu Series with the hydrogen engine-equipped Corolla. Racing vehicles are required to have a body made with high-quality materials as they need to withstand the harsh environment of motorsports. Kobenable Steel is based on the KOBELCO Group’s CO2 Reduction Solution for Blast Furnace Iron making announced in February 2021. It utilizes a technology that can significantly reduce CO2 emissions from the blast furnace, which was demonstrated at the company’s Kakogawa Works by charging the blast furnace with a large amount of hot briquetted iron produced by the MIDREX Process. Kobenable Steel is available for all types of steel products (steel sheet, steel plate, wire rod & bar products) manufactured at the Company’s Kakogawa Works and the Kobe Wire Rod & Bar Plant. In addition, since it maintains the same level of high quality as conventional products, Kobe Steel can continue to provide customers with blast furnace steel products that require high quality, such as special steel wire rods and ultra-high-tensile strength steel, which are the Company’s strengths.
Japanese Nissan Motor and Kobe Steel have announced that Nissan plans to use Kobenable Steel for Nissan models from January 2023 onward. Kobenable steel, commercialized by Kobe Steel, significantly reduces CO2 emissions in the blast furnace process. Kobe Steel will also supply Nissan with aluminum sheets made from green-aluminum raw materials. This will be the first time Kobenable Steel will be used in mass-produced vehicles. Nissan models will use Kobenable Premier, which reduces 100% of CO2 emissions during manufacturing through the mass-balance method*3. The specific amount of steel to be used by Nissan will be determined through further discussions. Nissan aims to achieve carbon neutrality throughout the entire product life cycle by 2050. Since approximately 60% of a vehicle's weight is made up of steel parts and around 10% of its weight is made up of aluminum parts, the use of green steel and green aluminum is a very effective way to reduce CO2 emissions during parts manufacturing, which is part of the vehicle's life cycle. Kobe Steel’s low CO2 Kobenable Steel was adopted by Toyota Motor in June 2022 as a material for automobile components. Toyota has employed Kobenable Premier, a steel product with 100% reduction in CO2 emissions during manufacturing, for the suspension members of its hydrogen engine-equipped racing vehicle Corolla. Since May 2021, Toyota has been participating in the Super Taikyu Series with the hydrogen engine-equipped Corolla. Racing vehicles are required to have a body made with high-quality materials as they need to withstand the harsh environment of motorsports. Kobenable Steel is based on the KOBELCO Group’s CO2 Reduction Solution for Blast Furnace Iron making announced in February 2021. It utilizes a technology that can significantly reduce CO2 emissions from the blast furnace, which was demonstrated at the company’s Kakogawa Works by charging the blast furnace with a large amount of hot briquetted iron produced by the MIDREX Process. Kobenable Steel is available for all types of steel products (steel sheet, steel plate, wire rod & bar products) manufactured at the Company’s Kakogawa Works and the Kobe Wire Rod & Bar Plant. In addition, since it maintains the same level of high quality as conventional products, Kobe Steel can continue to provide customers with blast furnace steel products that require high quality, such as special steel wire rods and ultra-high-tensile strength steel, which are the Company’s strengths.
