Embodied energy trade: Value chain
Who smelts, ships and buys the world's embodied energy
Who smelts, ships and buys the world's embodied energy What this tab covers Who does what, from equipment makers to builders, owners, operators, traders and users, with the leading companies at each step.The chain runs from energy resource owners to energy-intensive processors (smelters, iron plants, ammonia makers, data centres), shippers, and the manufacturers and consumers who use the products, with carbon border rules increasingly setting the terms.
The chain
Aluminium smelters Iron ore and green iron Hydrogen-based steel Ammonia producers Data centre operators Wind propulsion suppliers| Stage | What happens | Leading companies |
|---|---|---|
| Aluminium smelters | Turn alumina and electricity into metal | Chalco (China), 8.08 Mt in 2025 Rusal (Russia), 3.92 Mt in 2025 Rio Tinto (UK and Australia), 3.38 Mt in 2025 (equity share)52122 |
| Iron ore and green iron | Ore miners moving into DR-grade pellets and new ironmaking routes | Vale (Brazil) Rio Tinto (UK and Australia) BHP (Australia) Fortescue (Australia)9 |
| Hydrogen-based steel | Buy green iron or make it with hydrogen | Stegra (Sweden) thyssenkrupp (Germany) Salzgitter (Germany)10 |
| Ammonia producers | Make and export ammonia | CF Industries (US), about 10.1 million tons of gross ammonia in 2025 CWP Global (Australia, renewable projects)1810 |
| Data centre operators | Site computing near cheap clean power | atNorth (Iceland and Nordics) Amazon Web Services (US) Microsoft (US) Google (US)17 |
| Wind propulsion suppliers | Rotor, rigid wing and suction sails for cargo ships | Anemoi Marine Technologies (UK) BAR Technologies (UK) bound4blue (Spain)19 |
China makes about 60% of the world's primary aluminium, and coal plants made up about 72% of its smelting capacity in 2023. Gulf producers rely on gas, and Iceland and Norway on hydro. Producer tonnages above come from each company's 2025 results as reported in the trade press; Chalco's figure is for the listed company, not its whole parent group. CF Industries describes its network as the world's largest ammonia production network (company data). Its Blue Point low-carbon ammonia joint venture with JERA and Mitsui expects to begin civil construction in 2026.
Sources
- Chalco's 2025 revenue rises 1.7 per cent Y-o-Y (company results) AL Circle, 2026
- Green iron corridors: a new way to transform the steel business RMI, 2024
- SteelWatch explainer: why green iron trade will catalyse steel industry decarbonisation SteelWatch, 2025
- Nordic incentives keep data center costs competitive (Techerati article reposted by atNorth; company-hosted) atNorth / Techerati, 2025
- CF Industries Holdings reports full year 2025 net earnings of USD 1.46 billion (Form 8-K exhibit 99.1) CF Industries / US SEC, 2026
- Will 2025 be the year of the WAPS? Gard, 2025
- Rusal cut primary aluminum output in 2025 (company results) SMM (Shanghai Metals Market), 2026
- Rio Tinto fourth quarter 2025 production results (Form 6-K) Rio Tinto / US SEC, 2026