The World Steel Association (worldsteel), an industry group whose members account for 85% of global steel production, has announced its 2019 Steel Sustainability Champions, with Tenaris receiving recognition for the third, consecutive year. Launched in 2018, the Steel Sustainability Champions Programme aims to set higher standards for the steel industry and to encourage steel companies in their sustainability efforts.

Steel companies that would like to be considered for the programme must not only commit to sustainable development by signing the worldsteel sustainable development charter, but also provide measurable data to track their progress and issue an annual sustainability report. In its assessment, worldsteel considers six key sustainability indicators, including material efficiency, environmental management process systems, lost time injury frequency rate, employee training, investment in new process and products and the economic value distributed.

Tenaris is one of only four member companies of worldsteel to be recognized in every year since the Steel Sustainability Champions Programme started. The company keeps its commitment to sustainable development in 2020 despite the unprecedent challenges faced by the global economy and the steel industry.

“Over the next two years, the sustainability of our operations will be tested as never before,” commented Paolo Rocca, Chairman and CEO of Tenaris, in his introduction to the Tenaris 2019 Sustainability Report. “Our sales and our level of operations will be deeply affected, while the competitive environment in which we operate will be transformed in a way that today is difficult to anticipate. Yet in the long term, the world will resume a growth path, and the need for a reliable supply of energy will be essential for recovery. While we need to be prepared for the future, we also need to act swiftly and resolutely in facing the challenges of today.”

The announcement by worldsteel comes on the heels of the Tenaris 2019 Sustainability Report released on April 30, with the company making significant advancements in the areas of health and safety, employee development, environmental protection and community relations. Safety policies and actions implemented in 2019 helped to bring the lost minute injury rate 50% below the level reported in 2017, while the intensity of CO2 emissions and water withdrawal reduced by 2% and 18% respectively. Tenaris’s employees benefited from 2.7 million hours of trainings, and local communities – from 11.7 million USD invested into community-based programs.