Europe's Metal Sector Asks EU to Help it Deliver Energy Transition

• Market association Eurometaux has asked EU policy-makers to enable participant states to support domestic manufacturers of aluminium, zinc and also silicon with state help to make sure products of the metals critical for the transition to reduced carbon energy.

The European Union has an objective to reduce net greenhouse gas emissions by 55% from 1990 degrees by 2030, as a step in the direction of "net no" by 2050, with plans including electric vehicles that need aluminium and renewable resource that needs zinc and silicon.

Over half of the EU's aluminium and zinc smelters have actually decreased capacity or have actually closed momentarily, while silicon production has actually been cut as a result of document power costs as well as pressed supplies.

Also prior to the crisis hit in the final months of last year, electrical power's share of manufacturing costs for aluminium, silicon and also zinc was in between 30% -40%.

" The EU has actually temporarily shed 650,000 tonnes of main aluminium capacity; regarding 30% of the total amount," Eurometaux stated in a letter to European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen. "Europe's supply void have to be linked with imports, frequently with a higher (CO2) footprint,"

Imports additionally boost dependence on leading industrial metals producer China.

One procedure described in the letter is for the EU to "promptly establish an emergency state aid framework that provides clear conditions and also rules enabling member states to take quick action to aid national industries" encountering extraordinary energy costs.

One more is making use of "national critical gas gets to stabilise the marketplace".

" There is a genuine danger of further curtailments as well as closures in our field, to the detriment of Europe's calculated freedom objectives," stated the letter, adding various other energy extensive markets will be postponed from purchasing decarboniation.

In the tool term, Eurometaux suggests the EU motivates plans supporting corporate power purchase agreements (PPAs) for carbon complimentary electricity.

" It's difficult to make investments in several European member states because you can't obtain lasting contracts. The state can play a role in renewable PPAs," said Cillian O'Donoghue, Director, Energy & Climate Change at Eurometaux.

" Metal manufacturers can help by signing contracts for renewables, but they need the state to guarantee that the energy needed for their production strategies will certainly be offered as well as competitively priced."