ENVIRONMENTAL
Waste and Effluents
Masteel continue to reaffirmed our unwavering commitment to environmental stewardship by achieving full compliance with environmental regulations, with no fines or penalties recorded in FY2024. This milestone again underscores our dedication to responsible waste management and our continuous efforts to minimise our overall environmental footprint. At the heart of our sustainability strategy lies a structured approach guided by the recycling principles of Reduce, Reuse, and Recycle (3Rs), ensuring that we optimise resources, minimise waste, and drive circular economy practices across our operations.
A key focus area in our waste management strategy is the recycling and repurposing of industrial by-products, particularly skull steel, a material that is reintroduced into our production cycle instead of being discarded. By prioritising material recovery and reuse, we not only reduce raw material consumption but also significantly cut down waste generation within Masteel. Additionally, we actively cultivate a recycling approach culture within our community, embedding sustainable practices into everyday operations and encouraging employees to adopt environmentally responsible behaviours. Our ultimate goal is to reduce waste directed to landfill, ensuring that every by-product or excess material is well managed with the highest level of resource efficiency.
Furthermore, our sustainability initiatives extend beyond industrial waste management where we recognise the environmental impact of paper consumption. Since the established of our Printing Policy in 2022, we aim to systematically reduce paper consumption and to enhance our resource efficiency. This policy sets clear directives on responsible printing practices, including prioritising digital document sharing to minimise unnecessary printing, encouraging double-sided printing and the reuse of paper where possible, optimising the use of toner and envelopes to prevent excess consumption and promoting employee awareness and accountability in paper usage.
Through these targeted measures, we have significantly reduced our paper footprint, reinforcing our corporate responsibility towards resource conservation. More than a policy, this initiative represents Masteel’s drive to integrate sustainability into daily workplace culture, ensuring that all employees contribute to our broader environmental protection goals.
By embedding the 3Rs into our waste management and operational strategies, we remains steadfast in our mission to preserve natural resources, uphold the highest environmental standards, and set a benchmark for sustainability in the steel industry.
In FY2024, we successfully reduced our overall paper usage to 1,536 reams, marking a reduction of 84 reams compared to FY2023, when consumption stood at 1,620 reams. This reduction is a direct outcome of our ongoing commitment to minimising resource waste and aligns with our broader sustainability objectives. Compared to FY2022 usage of 1,580 reams, our sustained reduction trajectory underscores the effectiveness of our waste-conscious policies and operational efficiencies. This strategic approach not only reduces paper dependency but also enhances operational efficiency, proving that sustainable practices can be seamlessly integrated into business operations without compromising productivity. Moreover, our reduction of 5.2% from FY2023 to FY2024 exceeded our annual reduction target of at least 5%, reinforcing our dedication to continuous improvement. This achievement further reflects Masteel’s holistic sustainability vision, which extends beyond compliance to proactively adopting environmentally responsible behaviors across our operations. Looking ahead, we remain committed to further reducing our reliance on paper by exploring enhanced digital workflows, paperless approvals, and automated documentation systems. These initiatives will ensure that our resource optimisation strategies continue to support both environmental responsibility and operational excellence.
As a responsible steel producer, Masteel upholds strong environmental stewardship through a strict waste management system. We engage only DOE-certified waste collectors to ensure safe and compliant disposal practices. Adhering to DOE regulations, we ensure that all scheduled waste is disposed of within six months and that the total volume does not exceed 25 metric tonnes at any time. We successfully reduced the annual volume of scheduled waste by 9.49% compared to FY2022 through the adoption of best practices in our waste reduction initiatives. The increase in SW306 and SW410 waste is mainly attributed to the upgrading works for an additional wastewater treatment plant and the revamping process. Additionally, the rise in SW104 waste compared to FY2023 is due to a feasibility study conducted in 2023 aimed at recycling this waste back into the process, which had previously resulted in lower fume dust emissions that year. Beyond managing scheduled waste, we extends our commitment to sustainability by working with certified contractors to ensure the responsible collection and disposal of non-scheduled waste at legal landfill sites. Our holistic approach to waste management and resource efficiency reflects our dedication to reducing our environmental footprint while upholding the highest standards of compliance and sustainability. Looking ahead, we continue to explore innovative waste reduction strategies, recycling initiatives, and operational improvements to reinforce our long-term commitment to a cleaner, greener future.
We continue to monitor our non-recycled waste and ensure we able to achieve our set target of 1% reduction every year. Thus, we achieved a notable 2.02% reduction in non- recycled waste in 2024, reinforcing our commitment to sustainable waste management and environmental responsibility. This progress reflects the effectiveness of our strategic waste reduction initiatives, which focus on optimising resource efficiency, enhancing recycling processes, and minimising waste generation across our operations. By embedding sustainability into our core business processes, we continue to mitigate the environmental impact of industrial activities while upholding the highest standards of operational efficiency and compliance.
This achievement is particularly significant given the challenges associated with reducing non-recycled waste in heavy industries. It highlights Masteel’s proactive adoption of best practices in waste segregation, material recovery, and responsible disposal. Our continuous investments in waste management improvements, coupled with a strong internal culture of resource optimisation and recycling, have played a pivotal role in this progress. We remain steadfast in driving innovation and sustainability as we advance towards our long-term zero waste goal, ensuring that waste reduction remains a fundamental pillar of our environmental strategy.
Masteel remains devoted in our commitment to identifying and implementing innovative recycling opportunities, ensuring that materials once considered waste are effectively recovered and repurposed. Our waste management strategy prioritises the recycling of industrial by-products, such as skull steel, and the responsible handling of scheduled waste, ensuring these materials are processed and reintegrated into our operations in an environmentally sustainable manner. We reduce non-recycled waste, optimise resource utilisation, and enhance cost efficiency by embedding circular economy principles into our manufacturing processes. These efforts not only improve our environmental performance but also streamline operations, reinforcing our leadership in sustainable industrial practices.
As part of our strict environmental governance, we have set an internal benchmark to limit regulatory penalties related to waste management to a maximum of two per financial year. We are proud to report that in FY2024, our rigorous waste management protocols and strict compliance measures have resulted in zero penalties, underscoring our commitment to adhering to environmental laws and best practices. This achievement reflects Masteel’s proactive approach to environmental stewardship, ensuring that we uphold the highest operational standards while maintaining full compliance with regulatory requirements. Since 2022, our Petaling Jaya plant has been ISO14001 certified, covering 50% of our operations under this internationally recognised environmental management standard. This certification reinforces our dedication to continuous improvement, sustainable resource management, and reducing our overall environmental impact as we work towards a greener and more sustainable future.