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Steel that starts as scrap
Respecting and safeguarding the environment is a fundamental principle of Rider Industries. Steel can be recycled again and again without losing quality, so we make ours from scrap.
How we make steel more sustainable
The world steel industry is a major CO₂ emitter and has a big role to play in fighting climate change. Our work is built around three practices.
Reuse and recycle
Collected scrap is melted and remade into strong, high-quality steel. Even our slag is recycled into the melt or sold to construction companies.
Depollution technology
Dust collection hoods, flue gas dedusting and air cleaning systems filter the emissions from steelmaking before they are released.
Non-carbon energy
We are moving to alternative energy, starting with rooftop solar at our Kumasi plant.
Less imported steel, lower emissions
Using scrap instead of producing primary steel from iron ore cuts pollution and greenhouse gas emissions. Making steel locally can replace up to 240,000 tonnes of steel imports a year.
Clean air from our stacks
Producing one tonne of steel can release more than 10 kg of smoke. Our dust collector draws the smoke into a pulse-jet cloth filter; the cleaned air is then sent through the induced draft fan to the exhaust stack.
mg/Nm³ dust content of smoke
m³/h blast capacity handled
dust collection rate
Ghana's largest rooftop solar at a manufacturing plant
Steel recycling uses a lot of electricity. Being in Africa, we make use of the abundant sunshine: a 4.3 MW rooftop system at our Kumasi plant, commissioned in January 2024 with Daystar Power, complements our supply from the national grid. We are also looking for new technologies to reduce our power use at night.
Steel: the four Rs
Construction is one of the world’s largest waste generators, and the circular economy is the right answer. Steel is a permanent material that can be recycled almost 100% without loss of quality, and our induction furnaces can run on 100% scrap.
Reduce
We keep reducing the material, energy and resources used to make steel, and we educate builders and manufacturers on lighter, higher-strength steels.
Reuse
About 30% of our by-product is slag, which is reused in cement and road building. Heat from furnace gases preheats incoming air.
Remanufacture
Steel components are durable. For over 10 years our recycled rods and sections have gone into major construction projects across Ghana.
Recycle
Scrap that once went to landfill is now recycled: close to 150,000 tonnes a year, in a closed material loop.
A new livelihood for scrap collectors
Before our factory started, scrap collectors worked alone in poor conditions and most scrap metal was simply dumped. Today many small and medium companies across Ghana collect and separate scrap for sale, and over 1,500 scrap collectors have received training to build their technical and management skills.
