Arabian Gulf Steel Industries, AGSI, the UAE’s largest private steelmaker and recycler, has achieved the lowest verified carbon footprint for rebar, marking a major step for low-carbon construction materials produced in the UAE.
AGSI’s reinforcing bar produced in Abu Dhabi has a verified cradle-to-gate carbon footprint of 139 kg of carbon dioxide equivalent per tonne, well below the typical 600 to 700 kg per tonne for scrap-based rebar. Its Sharjah operations record 218 kg CO₂e per tonne. Both figures are also below the nearest comparable publicly available EPD figure of 300 kg CO₂e per tonne.
The achievement was announced at Khalifa Economic Zones Abu Dhabi, KEZAD Group headquarters, in the presence of Mohamed Al Khadar Al Ahmed, CEO, Khalifa Economic Zones Abu Dhabi – KEZAD Group, Asam Hussain, Founder and CEO of Arabian Gulf Steel Industries, and Ayhan Tugrul, Chief Operating Officer of CARES.
The announcement brings together AGSI’s manufacturing capability, the independent verification provided under the CARES EPD programme and KEZAD’s industrial infrastructure. It also supports the growing use of verified product-level carbon data across the construction sector, where developers, contractors, consultants and regulators increasingly need clear information on embodied carbon.
Asam Hussain, Founder and CEO of Arabian Gulf Steel Industries, said: “This is a defining achievement for AGSI and for the UAE steel industry. Low-carbon steel production is no longer a future ambition. It is measurable, verified and being delivered today. Our 2024 carbon-neutral plant milestone established the direction of our journey, and this EPD takes that progress further, setting a new benchmark for what can be achieved in low-carbon steel production. We set out to push the boundaries for steel decarbonisation, and we will continue to challenge what is possible.”
Abdullah Al Hameli, Chief Executive Officer, Economic Cities and Free Zones, AD Ports Group, added: “AGSI’s achievement is a significant milestone for Abu Dhabi’s industrial sector, establishing the company as a world leader in steel decarbonisation and adding to Abu Dhabi’s standing as a global hub for advanced industry. It’s a strong example of the level of performance that manufacturers operating within KEZAD can achieve. KEZAD provides the infrastructure, utilities, logistics access and long-term operating base that manufacturers need to grow and invest. AGSI’s success highlights the strength of Abu Dhabi’s industrial base in enabling companies to advance efficient and lower-carbon production and compete at the highest levels internationally.”
Ayhan Tugrul, Chief Operating Officer of CARES, said: “AGSI’s reinforcing steel is already certified to the CARES scheme for quality and traceability, and this independently verified EPD now sets out its product carbon footprint on the same rigorous basis. Verified, product-specific data of this kind is what allows designers, contractors and asset owners to make sound decisions on embodied carbon rather than relying on generic industry averages. It also strengthens Abu Dhabi’s position as a growing centre for advanced industrial production and lower-carbon construction materials.”
Both AGSI results cover production from raw materials to the factory gate and have been independently verified against recognised international standards. The full Environmental Product Declarations, EPDs, are available on the CARES website. For a fair comparison, EPDs must use the same rules, measurement method and production boundaries. The figures quoted here have been compared on that basis.
Embodied carbon is the carbon linked to a material across its life cycle. It is becoming an important requirement in major construction and infrastructure projects. EPDs give buyers and project teams a verified and consistent way to assess and compare the environmental impact of products.
AGSI’s latest result builds on its 2024 carbon-neutral plant milestone under PAS 2060. It now extends that performance to the product level. AGSI uses 100% locally recycled scrap and a fully electrified production process.
AGSI’s verified low-carbon rebar gives the market a local material option that supports quality, supply reliability and carbon reporting needs. It also strengthens Abu Dhabi’s position as a growing centre for advanced industrial production and lower-carbon construction materials.
