Technology Options for Heavy Industry to Innovate

The industrial sector represents 17% of U.S. GDP, and its global competitiveness now depends on reducing production emissions. The document identifies specific decarbonization pathways for cement, steel, chemicals, and hydrogen production, while highlighting the role of federal laws like the Inflation Reduction Act in catalyzing these projects. It argues that reducing emissions is essential for U.S. products to remain competitive, particularly as the European Union implements the Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism.

• The U.S. industrial sector, which accounts for 17% of national GDP, must modernize through innovative technologies to remain globally competitive as markets shift toward low-emission production.
• Specific technological pathways for heavy industry include: using blended cements, biofuels, carbon capture and sequestration (CCS), and carbon mineralization for cement; direct iron reduction via hydrogen and electrochemical pathways for steel; and electrification, CCS, and waste biomass feedstocks for chemicals.
• Hydrogen production in the U.S. can be innovated through electrolysis using clean electricity or heat (including nuclear), natural gas with CCS, biomass gasification with CCS, and the extraction of geologic hydrogen.
• Current federal legislation, including the CHIPS and Science Act, the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, and the Inflation Reduction Act, is driving industrial modernization, with policies estimated to create 336,000 annual manufacturing jobs.
• To enhance competitiveness against international measures like the European Union’s Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism, the U.S. should deploy tax credits, subsidies, public procurement demand signals, and market-based mechanisms.

APA

World Resources Institute (2025). Technology Options for Heavy Industry to Innovate. https://files.wri.org/d8/s3fs-public/2025-03/industrial-innovation-competitive-manufacturing-2-pager.pdf

Chicago

World Resources Institute. Technology Options for Heavy Industry to Innovate. 2025. https://files.wri.org/d8/s3fs-public/2025-03/industrial-innovation-competitive-manufacturing-2-pager.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=World Resources Institute |title=Technology Options for Heavy Industry to Innovate |date=2025 |url=https://files.wri.org/d8/s3fs-public/2025-03/industrial-innovation-competitive-manufacturing-2-pager.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{worldresourcesinstitute2025technology, author = {{World Resources Institute}}, title = {{Technology Options for Heavy Industry to Innovate}}, institution = {World Resources Institute}, year = {2025}, url = {https://files.wri.org/d8/s3fs-public/2025-03/industrial-innovation-competitive-manufacturing-2-pager.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }