The world’s two biggest miners are teaming up in a bid to develop Australia’s first electric-smelting furnace, in what could prove an important step toward slashing emissions in the steel-making process.

BHP Group Ltd. and Rio Tinto Group, alongside Australia’s BlueScope Steel Ltd., will share data and research on the nascent technology that would usually be kept in-house. A pre-feasibility study is being launched to assess a location for a pilot facility, which could be commissioned as early as 2027, the companies said in a joint statement.