Tung Ho Steel cuts Taiwan’s carbon emissions with green tech

東和鋼鐵（Tung Ho Steel）利用綠能技術減少台灣的碳排放

TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Tung Ho Steel is transforming its Miaoli plant into a digitized smart factory, part of a transformation to make the traditional steelmaker cleaner and greener.

Over the past decade, the company has upgraded infrastructure, optimized production, and laid the groundwork for a “digital twin” future, one where real-world operations are mirrored digitally for precision management, per CNA.

General Manager Huang Ping-hua (黃炳樺) explained that decarbonization must be balanced with business survival. “We cannot reduce carbon blindly just because we love the planet,” he said, noting that Europe offers a model of steady climate action without sacrificing growth.

Tung Ho joined Taiwan’s voluntary carbon reduction program and applied for “Preferential Rate A,” committing to slash emissions 25.2% from 2021 levels by 2030. The reductions are costly, Huang admitted, and he urged the government to clarify carbon trading rules.

The company began cutting energy use years ago. In 2010, it launched Taiwan’s first rebar mill without a reheating furnace, replacing fuel-heavy reheating with high-frequency induction that taps into residual billet heat.

“Tung Ho Steel was the first in Taiwan and likely among the first five in Asia to eliminate reheating furnaces,” Huang said. The method allows billets exiting at 900 C to go straight into processing after heat equalization, using just 20 to 30 kWh of electricity, an approach that slashes energy use and carbon output.

Digital transformation at Tung Ho started with practical steps: installing flow meters, real-time tracking, and temperature sensors to feed AI systems with accurate data. Huang said without data, AI is useless, noting many plant facilities are over 30 years old.

AI applications are already improving operations. License plate recognition speeds up shipping logistics, while robotic arms will soon automate bundle ID tracking, replacing handwritten labels.

For Tung Ho, energy efficiency is not just environmental, it is a competitive edge. As it adds AI to the mix, the company hopes its smart factory path will be a model for Taiwan’s traditional industries aiming to decarbonize without falling behind.