Tata Steel has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the University of Science and Technology Beijing (USTB) to collaborate on research and development aimed at advancing low-carbon steelmaking, with a focus on scrap utilisation and steel waste valorisation, among other methods.

The partnership will bring together teams from Tata Steel and Tata Steel Research and Innovation Limited with researchers at USTB to work across multiple themes linked to circular steel production. These include enhancing scrap-based steelmaking processes, developing pathways for the recovery and reuse of steel industry waste streams, improving end-product performance, and exploring carbon capture and utilisation (CCU) technologies.

The collaboration is expected to leverage USTB’s academic expertise along with its laboratory and pilot-scale testing infrastructure to validate emerging solutions and support their potential scale-up for industrial deployment. The initiative aligns with Tata Steel’s broader decarbonisation roadmap and highlights the role of global research partnerships in accelerating the transition towards more resource-efficient steelmaking.

Commenting on the development, Subodh Pandey, Vice President – Technology, R&D, NMB and Graphene at Tata Steel, said: “Low carbon steelmaking and associated product development for our customers is the need of the hour. At Tata Steel, we are actively driving the global transition to low-carbon steelmaking, and innovation is at the core of this journey.”

From the academic partner’s side, Wang Xuewen, Vice President at USTB, said the collaboration reflects the growing importance of industry–academia cooperation in tackling the environmental challenges facing heavy industries. “By combining USTB’s research strengths with Tata Steel’s industrial experience, we aim to accelerate the development and application of advanced low-carbon steelmaking technologies,” he noted.

The MoU builds on an existing association between the two institutions and is expected to support faster engineering validation and adoption of research outcomes. As steelmakers globally intensify efforts to reduce emissions and improve material circularity, such partnerships are likely to play a key role in scaling scrap-based production routes and strengthening waste management practices across the steel value chain.