<p>The iron and steel industry, a predominant contributor to carbon emissions within China's industrial sector, occupies a pivotal role in the nation’s endeavor to achieve “carbon peaking and carbon neutrality”. This study employs a life cycle assessment (LCA) framework to develop a process-based carbon emission accounting model for iron and steel enterprises, comprehensively covering the three stages of raw material procurement, material transportation, and steel production processing (cradle-to-gate scope). The model is subsequently employed to calculate the carbon footprint of a sample Chinese iron and steel enterprise. The findings indicate that the enterprise’s CO₂ emission intensity amounted to 2.32 tCO₂/t crude steel in 2023. It is noteworthy that the steel production and processing stage emerges as the primary emission source, accounting for 67.15% of the total life cycle emissions. Within this stage, the sintering, blast furnace, and rolling processes collectively contribute 82.28% to its emissions. Conversely, the raw material acquisition stage accounts for 30.07% of the total life cycle emissions, primarily attributable to fossil fuel consumption during resource extraction. A reduction in emissions during this stage can be achieved through an increase in the scrap utilization ratio. However, the material transportation stage demonstrates limited mitigation potential, as the enterprise currently relies on clean transportation modes for bulk material movement.</p>