Europe: EuroSlag, the European association of ferrous slag producers and processors, recorded 17.5Mt of granulated blast furnace slag (GBFS) used in cement production in the EU in 2025. A further 1.8Mt of GBFS served as aggregates, while the bloc used 12.6Mt of steel slag, including 8.6Mt in roadbuilding and 1.3Mt in building construction. It supplied its consumption from domestic production of 17.8Mt of GBFS and 16.8Mt of steel slag, as well as draw-down from stockpiles. EuroSlag said that cumulative use of ferrous slag across all applications prevented the extraction of 1.25Bnt of rock and the emission of 330Mt of CO2 between 2000 and 2025.

EuroSlag chair and FEhS Building Materials Institute managing director Thomas Reiche said “We need adequately funded, practice-orientated research, as well as optimised national and European regulations. Examples include the EU’s Circular Economy Act and Public Procurement Act.”

The proposed Circular Economy Act aims to increase the industrial application of by-products and other circular materials in the EU. EuroSlag is also lobbying for EU public procurement reform to give preferential treatment to circular materials.

European Commission European Union Steel slag Production ground granulated blast furnace slag stockpile government Europe Euroslag CO2 sustainability lobbying market procurement