The Latest from Alexander Kaufman

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  Green steel

  China is winning on renewables. Will it win on green steel, too?

  While the U.S. backtracks on green steel commitments, Chinese companies are starting to make iron with hydrogen. One just made its first export deal to Europe.

  By Alexander C. Kaufman  .  15 August 2025

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  Green steel

  Cleaner ironmaking tech a bright spot as US firms retreat from green steel

  Most steelmakers rely on iron from polluting coal-fired blast furnaces. But exploding demand for “direct reduced iron” promises to slash the industry’s emissions.

  By Alexander C. Kaufman  .  24 June 2025

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  Green steel

  Major US steel company backs away from plan to make green steel

  Cleveland-Cliffs was going to outfit an Ohio plant with pollution-reducing tech. Now, to align with Trump’s priorities, the firm is turning back to fossil fuels.

  By Alexander C. Kaufman  .  17 June 2025

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  Clean industry

  Trump deals a ‘big blow’ to clean heat with Energy Department cuts

  The loss of $3.7 billion in funding for industrial decarbonization threatens efforts to replace large-scale fossil-fueled boilers with electric options.

  By Alexander C. Kaufman  .  6 June 2025

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  Green steel

  Trump touts US Steel-Nippon Steel deal that could result in more coal

  The Japanese steelmaker has pledged to extend the life of U.S. Steel’s dirty blast furnaces if Trump greenlights a deal, potentially locking in decades of pollution.

  By Alexander C. Kaufman  .  2 June 2025

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  Fossil fuels

  Some of the most polluted US cities are home to coal-based steel plants

  Seven factories still use blast furnaces — and worsen pollution in the cities they are located, according to an analysis by climate research group Industrious Labs.

  By Alexander C. Kaufman  .  21 May 2025

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  Clean industry

  ‘It’s bleak’: Trump prepares to gut investments to clean up heavy industry

  The Industrial Demonstrations Program would create thousands of jobs while helping modernize U.S. industries like steelmaking. It’s on Trump’s chopping block.

  By Alexander C. Kaufman  .  8 May 2025

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  Solar

  Solar recycling startup looks to build $90M facility in Florida

  OnePlanet uses a novel process to salvage copper, silicon, and aluminum from broken solar panels. It aims to bring its first full-scale plant online in 2027.

  By Alexander C. Kaufman  .  22 April 2025

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  Clean industry

  Bipartisan bill to boost green building materials glides through House

  As the Trump administration cuts or scrutinizes clean industry projects, Congress moves to bolster R&D and deployment of low-carbon concrete, cement, and asphalt.

  By Alexander C. Kaufman  .  3 April 2025

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  Green steel

  Hyundai to make ‘low-carbon’ steel at $6B plant in Louisiana

  The automaker will use an electric arc furnace and potentially a fossil gas–based process at the new facility, eschewing traditional coal-centered methods.

  By Alexander C. Kaufman  .  25 March 2025