**Brussels**: The EU unveils an action plan to strengthen its steel and metals sector, addressing rising energy costs and competition. The initiative includes 47 strategic projects to secure raw materials, with industry leaders calling for immediate action to preserve competitiveness and bolster decarbonisation efforts.
The European Union (EU) has announced a new action plan aimed at bolstering its struggling steel and metals industry, which has been under significant strain due to escalating energy costs and external competition. This declaration follows a prolonged crisis that began in late 2021 and has been exacerbated by rising energy prices and tariffs from the United States. The situation has left several European facilities in a precarious position, with industry stakeholders calling for urgent intervention.
The European Steel and Metals Action Plan, unveiled earlier this month, is intended to provide a framework for addressing the multifaceted challenges facing the metals sector, including high energy costs, unfair international competition, the need for investment in decarbonisation, and various regulatory burdens. The EU’s executive body highlighted that the region is experiencing a decline in steelmaking capacity—a situation unique among major steel-producing areas across the globe.
As part of the initiative, the European Commission has identified 47 strategic projects aimed at securing and diversifying access to critical raw materials, which encompass essential metals such as lithium, nickel, cobalt, manganese, and graphite. The selected projects are expected to significantly benefit the EU’s battery raw material value chain, an area of increasing importance in the wake of the transition to sustainable energy solutions. These initiatives will be streamlining the permitting process and facilitating access to financing, aspects considered critical for the advancement of the metals industry.
Stéphane Séjourné, European Commission Executive Vice-President for Prosperity and Industrial Strategy, commented on the initiative, stating, “This is a landmark moment for European sovereignty as an industrial powerhouse.” However, industry associations emphasise that while the recognition of the challenges is a step forward, immediate action is critical to safeguard the remaining competitiveness of the energy-intensive sectors within the EU.
The high energy costs facing the industry are notably problematic; they are reported to be up to five times higher than those in the United States and China. The persistent combination of elevated energy prices and new U.S tariffs is leading to a potentially irreversible decline in some sectors, as highlighted by representatives from EUROFER, the European Steel Association. President Henrik Adam noted that while the European Commission has correctly identified the issues afflicting the industry, “high energy prices affect not only steel and metals production but are dragging down entire European industrial value chains.”
European Aluminium, another key sector association, has indicated that although the action plan contains promising elements, it necessitates swift execution. Paul Voss, the organisation’s Director General, stated, “Strategy alone won’t keep our operations running,” further underscoring the urgency of immediate interventions targeted at stabilising the sector, particularly concerning energy costs and scrap leakage.
The industry is calling for both urgent measures to mitigate current challenges and long-term structural reforms to ensure that aluminium production continues to be a significant component of Europe’s industrial landscape. Without prompt and decisive actions, the EU risks losing significant aspects of its industrial competitiveness and jeopardising its ambitious decarbonisation objectives.
Source: Noah Wire Services
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