The G7 has provided the initial ideas and the Terms of Reference for kick-starting a Climate Club, which will be launched shortly, and officially commence its activities. Conceptualised as a high-ambition intergovernmental forum with a particular focus on industrial decarbonisation, the Climate Club aims to be open and inclusive and currently already has 27 member countries.
Building on existing discussions on industrial decarbonisation and international cooperation, this paper presents the value and challenges of piloting the activities of the Climate Club in the steel sector, a high-emission sector with significant trade exposure. The authors make a case for greater institutionalisation of international cooperation efforts through the Climate Club, which can set membership criteria based on well-defined targets and accompanying roadmaps, and can further fill the gap in ongoing steel sector initiatives.
Through concrete examples of potential cooperation between countries from the Global North and the Global South across the steel value chain, this paper illustrates the importance of building trust and creating a safe space for discussion and policy coordination in the steel sector.
