ISO 14404-1:2024

Overview

ISO 14404-1:2024 - Calculation method of carbon dioxide emission intensity from iron and steel production - Part 1: Steel plant with blast furnace provides a standardized, plant‑level method to calculate the total annual CO2 emission intensity of an integrated steel plant that uses a blast furnace. The standard defines how to set boundaries, collect material and energy flows, apply CO2 emission factors, and include direct, upstream and credit emissions to produce a single, transparent CO2 intensity metric (CO2 per unit of crude steel). Annex A supports conversion to energy consumption and consumption efficiency.

Keywords: ISO 14404-1:2024, carbon dioxide emission intensity, blast furnace, integrated steel plant, CO2 accounting, emission factors.

Key Topics and Requirements

• Boundary definition: Clear differentiation between site boundary and calculation boundary; categorization of emissions into several categories (Category 1–4) to ensure consistent scope selection.
• Data collection: Procedures for gathering crude steel production data, direct emission sources, upstream emissions (imports), and credit sources (exports/by‑products).
• Emission factors: Use of default and plant‑specific emission factors; guidance on by‑product gas accounting and transparency of factor sources.
• Calculation procedure: Stepwise method to compute net CO2 emissions attributable to the plant and to derive CO2 emission intensity (total net CO2 ÷ crude steel production).
• Principles: Emphasis on relevance, completeness, consistency, accuracy and transparency to support comparable, auditable results.
• Informative annexes: Annex A (energy consumption/intensity conversion), Annex C (calculation example), Annex E (decarbonization strategies and impacts on CO2 accounting).

Practical Applications and Users

ISO 14404-1:2024 is designed for practical use in:

• Steel producers operating integrated plants with blast furnaces who need a consistent, plant‑level CO2 intensity metric.
• Environmental and sustainability managers for internal tracking of decarbonization progress and operational improvement.
• Compliance teams and regulators for reporting and benchmarking under national or voluntary GHG programs.
• Carbon auditors, consultants and investors assessing site‑level emissions performance and comparability.
• Energy managers using Annex A to link CO2 reporting with energy consumption and efficiency programs.

Note: This standard produces a plant‑level CO2 intensity and is not intended to calculate the carbon footprint of individual steel products.

Related Standards and Guidance

• Other parts of the ISO 14404 series (see ISO website) that address different plant types or methods.
• The methodology aligns with the worldsteel “CO Emissions Data Collection User Guide,” which served as a basis for this revision.
• Conforms to ISO drafting principles (ISO/IEC Directives) and is intended for consistent, transparent CO2 accounting across regions.