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Google has committed to purchasing green steel from Stegra, a move aimed at reducing emissions embedded in data centre construction and expansion. Data centres are capital-intensive infrastructure; the steel and concrete used in their build represents a significant but often overlooked portion of their lifecycle carbon footprint. Stegra produces iron and steel using hydrogen-based direct reduction, which displaces coal-based blast furnaces and substantially cuts scope 3 emissions for buyers.
This deal matters because it signals that major technology firms are beginning to address supply chain decarbonisation at scale. Google's scale – it operates dozens of data centres globally and plans significant capacity additions – means this procurement decision moves beyond tokenism. The company has set a target of operating on carbon-free energy by 2030, but that covers only scope 2. Scope 3 emissions, which include embodied carbon in purchased materials, remain largely unmanaged across the tech sector.
Stegra's hydrogen-based process reduces emissions by up to 95% compared to conventional steelmaking, according to the company. Verification of that claim matters; without transparent measurement against a recognised standard (GHG Protocol, SBTi), the environmental benefit remains unproven. The deal also raises a practical question: as demand for green steel grows among hyperscale cloud operators and construction firms, will green steel production scale fast enough to meet it? Current production capacity remains constrained. Price premium and supply security will determine whether this becomes a model other tech firms replicate or remains a niche commitment.
