Right now, Nippon Steel & JFE Steel are brandishing their green credentials at the CoP29 in Azerbaijan. They are representing Japan at the climate summit to highlight their efforts in branding and marketing "green steel" and to address future challenges and opportunities in the industry.

However, we know that in August the Japanese steel giants bought a combined 30% stake in Whitehaven Coal’s Blackwater mine in Queensland worth US$1.08 billion. This joint venture partnership means assured supply of metallurgical coal for Japan’s steel production, and cash flow for Whitehaven Coal’s expansion projects for many years to come. 

Nippon Steel also insists that metallurgical coal is essential to its business strategy, despite the International Energy Agency (IEA) predicting that demand for metallurgical coal will fall as existing sources of production are sufficient to cover demand through to 2050.

Today, senior executives from Nippon Steel and JFE Steel are presenting a “green steel” panel at COP29. Buying coal mines while speaking about steel decarbonisation at the world's biggest climate summit is dangerous and disingenuous- it’s #RiskyBusiness. Email them today to tell them that we are not buying into their greenwash, and we demand Nippon Steel and JFE Steel to commit to phase out fossil fuels in their steelmaking.