Overview

Heavy industry is at a crossroads: Global demand is rising, but decarbonization requires shifting technology, fuels, and energy sources to meet climate goals.

The industrial sector accounts for more than a third of global energy use and a quarter of CO2 emissions from the global energy system. Iron and steel, cement, and chemicals, account for the largest share of these emissions and are among the most challenging parts of the energy transition. Industrial emissions are shaped by fuel use, process emissions, production technologies, and energy sources. New plants, expansions, and refurbishments can lock in emissions for decades, while retirements and technology transition decisions can rapidly change regional emissions trajectories.

GEM’s heavy industry program develops and analyzes free-to-use, open source, asset-level data to make these sectors visible and measurable, documenting facility locations, ownership, capacity, production pathways, and key indicators relevant to decarbonization.

GEM’s work highlights an important reality: Automated approaches alone are not enough. In many regions, manual research and regional specialities remain essential to building comprehensive, accurate inventories. By publishing structured datasets and dashboards, GEM helps close persistent information gaps and enables independent analysis of industrial transition pathways aligned with climate goals.