ByDr. Tim Sandle
SCIENCE EDITOR
DIGITAL JOURNAL
September 23, 2025
September 23, 2025
OUTLAW DEEP SEA MINING
The research ship MV Anuanua Moana is pictured at a port in Rarotonga, Cook Islands, during an expedition to far-flung South Pacific waters in June 2025, spearheading efforts to dredge the tropical waters for industrial deep-sea mining.
The research ship MV Anuanua Moana is pictured at a port in Rarotonga, Cook Islands, during an expedition to far-flung South Pacific waters in June 2025, spearheading efforts to dredge the tropical waters for industrial deep-sea mining.
- Copyright AFP William WEST
The global net-zero drive crosses many sectors. Generally, it is consumer-facing sectors like EVs and packaging, as well as the energy sector, that grab the headlines. A neglected area, as far as mainstream reports cover, is heavy industry and transport. These sectors can contribute significantly to decarbonisation and climate change. With over 30% of global emissions tied to these sectors, the potential for transformative impact is large.
It has been estimated that 85% in emission cuts are possible for the sector through measures like carbon capture, green hydrogen, and other technologies (if appropriately scaled).
Safwan Sobhan, Founder & Chairman at Safwan Bashundhara Global (SBG), has told Digital Journal why and how heavy industry must lead this transition and why emerging markets are uniquely positioned to lead it.
Heavy industry is not the obstacle
The sector represents around a quarter of global greenhouse gas emissions. Taken together, industry and transport generate nearly 30% of global carbon emissions, placing them at the forefront of both the challenge and the opportunity in the climate fight.
Sobhan’s assessment is that, unlike diffuse emissions from cars or households, industrial emissions are concentrated, measurable and technologically addressable.
He explains: “Once breakthroughs are adopted at scale, they can cut emissions globally in one sweep. Industrial decarbonisation technologies, from carbon capture to green hydrogen, could reduce emissions in these sectors by up to 85% if deployed effectively.”
There are obstacles: “Yet, current deployment remains limited, with around 50 commercial carbon capture facilities operating today, alongside roughly 230 green hydrogen projects worldwide. While there are hundreds more in the pipeline, industrial applications account for less than 10% of total carbon capture capacity, and many hydrogen projects face delays.”
Emerging economies hold the real opportunity
Too often, the global debate assumes that solutions will be invented in the West and adopted elsewhere. But emerging markets are where the scale is greatest, the infrastructure is newest, and the incentives for progression are strongest.
Sobhan cites: “Bangladesh, for example, is industrialising at speed. This allows it to integrate innovations like green hydrogen, a clean fuel made using renewable energy; carbon capture, which traps carbon dioxide emissions before they reach the atmosphere; or ammonia-powered vessels, ships that run on carbon-free ammonia instead of polluting fuels.”
To illustrate this: “Reports show 59% of the world’s proposed clean industry projects, valued at $1.6 trillion, are located in ‘Sunbelt’ countries like India and Mexico, outpacing Western economies.6 Emerging economies are already proving they can lead, not follow.”
First movers will own the future
This transition is not just about compliance but about competitive advantage, Sobhan adds.
He observes: “Ports that run on renewable power will become the preferred global trade hubs. Steel mills that adopt green hydrogen will supply the infrastructure of the next generation of cities, and shipping companies that transition to ammonia or methanol will dominate decarbonised supply chains. Every industrial revolution has created winners who dared to lead. The net-zero transition will be no different, but the opportunity window is narrow. The shipping sector is on a rebound, with CO2 emissions rising 5% in 2022 and reliance on alternative fuels still below 0.5%. Those who move first will set the global standards others must follow.”
Integration is the missing piece
The challenge is not only technological, but systemic. As Sobhan points out: “A port cannot decarbonise without green ships, and a cement plant can’t transition without low-carbon power. Industrial ecosystems are positioned to synchronise these shifts, creating momentum that isolated companies cannot achieve. This is where emerging-market industrial groups, often spanning shipping, power, logistics and construction, have an outsized role to play. Integration is their competitive advantage, and it can be a global accelerator.”
Sobhan concludes: “If we want to get to net zero, heavy industry has to be part of the solution and not seen as the problem. Industry and transport together generate close to a third of global emissions, so progress depends on how these sectors
The global net-zero drive crosses many sectors. Generally, it is consumer-facing sectors like EVs and packaging, as well as the energy sector, that grab the headlines. A neglected area, as far as mainstream reports cover, is heavy industry and transport. These sectors can contribute significantly to decarbonisation and climate change. With over 30% of global emissions tied to these sectors, the potential for transformative impact is large.
It has been estimated that 85% in emission cuts are possible for the sector through measures like carbon capture, green hydrogen, and other technologies (if appropriately scaled).
Safwan Sobhan, Founder & Chairman at Safwan Bashundhara Global (SBG), has told Digital Journal why and how heavy industry must lead this transition and why emerging markets are uniquely positioned to lead it.
Heavy industry is not the obstacle
The sector represents around a quarter of global greenhouse gas emissions. Taken together, industry and transport generate nearly 30% of global carbon emissions, placing them at the forefront of both the challenge and the opportunity in the climate fight.
Sobhan’s assessment is that, unlike diffuse emissions from cars or households, industrial emissions are concentrated, measurable and technologically addressable.
He explains: “Once breakthroughs are adopted at scale, they can cut emissions globally in one sweep. Industrial decarbonisation technologies, from carbon capture to green hydrogen, could reduce emissions in these sectors by up to 85% if deployed effectively.”
There are obstacles: “Yet, current deployment remains limited, with around 50 commercial carbon capture facilities operating today, alongside roughly 230 green hydrogen projects worldwide. While there are hundreds more in the pipeline, industrial applications account for less than 10% of total carbon capture capacity, and many hydrogen projects face delays.”
Emerging economies hold the real opportunity
Too often, the global debate assumes that solutions will be invented in the West and adopted elsewhere. But emerging markets are where the scale is greatest, the infrastructure is newest, and the incentives for progression are strongest.
Sobhan cites: “Bangladesh, for example, is industrialising at speed. This allows it to integrate innovations like green hydrogen, a clean fuel made using renewable energy; carbon capture, which traps carbon dioxide emissions before they reach the atmosphere; or ammonia-powered vessels, ships that run on carbon-free ammonia instead of polluting fuels.”
To illustrate this: “Reports show 59% of the world’s proposed clean industry projects, valued at $1.6 trillion, are located in ‘Sunbelt’ countries like India and Mexico, outpacing Western economies.6 Emerging economies are already proving they can lead, not follow.”
First movers will own the future
This transition is not just about compliance but about competitive advantage, Sobhan adds.
He observes: “Ports that run on renewable power will become the preferred global trade hubs. Steel mills that adopt green hydrogen will supply the infrastructure of the next generation of cities, and shipping companies that transition to ammonia or methanol will dominate decarbonised supply chains. Every industrial revolution has created winners who dared to lead. The net-zero transition will be no different, but the opportunity window is narrow. The shipping sector is on a rebound, with CO2 emissions rising 5% in 2022 and reliance on alternative fuels still below 0.5%. Those who move first will set the global standards others must follow.”
Integration is the missing piece
The challenge is not only technological, but systemic. As Sobhan points out: “A port cannot decarbonise without green ships, and a cement plant can’t transition without low-carbon power. Industrial ecosystems are positioned to synchronise these shifts, creating momentum that isolated companies cannot achieve. This is where emerging-market industrial groups, often spanning shipping, power, logistics and construction, have an outsized role to play. Integration is their competitive advantage, and it can be a global accelerator.”
Sobhan concludes: “If we want to get to net zero, heavy industry has to be part of the solution and not seen as the problem. Industry and transport together generate close to a third of global emissions, so progress depends on how these sectors
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