PRESS RELEASE – for immediate release
Federation of Aluminium Consumers in Europe – FACE
Friday 13 March 2026, Brussels
PRESS RELEASE
IRAN WAR-STRAIT OF HORMUZ: EUROPE RISKS MAJOR ALUMINIUM DISRUPTION
“The combination of geopolitical tensions, disruption to trade routes and the sharp increase in energy costs is putting the stability of the global aluminium supply chain at risk, particularly for primary metal, with serious repercussions for Europe.” This warning comes from Mario Conserva, Secretary General of FACE – Federation of Aluminium Consumers in Europe, who highlights the concrete risk of a crisis affecting the European industry in the sector.
“The serious problems we are witnessing have several implications, first and foremost concerning the flow of raw aluminium produced in Middle-Eastern countries and destined for international markets, particularly Europe — an area which, as is well known, produces little more than 15% of its internal demand for primary aluminium. In addition, conditions are emerging upstream for a drastic reduction in global production of raw metal, again due to issues affecting the Gulf countries, where primary aluminium smelting plants rely essentially on gas,” Conserva explains.
This is compounded by the issue of alumina availability, the raw material required to produce primary aluminium in smelters. “To produce one million tonnes of primary aluminium, around two million tonnes of alumina are required, which Gulf countries must almost entirely import from other parts of the world,” Conserva adds. “If trade routes remain blocked, Gulf smelters generally hold reserves that last only two to three weeks.”
The industrial success of the GCC (Gulf Cooperation Council) in the aluminium raw material production segment — the result of decades of major investments that have also involved many European operators — has created a value chain of excellence that today represents the second most important economic sector in the region.
Primary aluminium plants in the Gulf are now highly exposed: any attacks on energy infrastructure, or disruptions in gas supplies, could force producing industries to shut down their plants.
In this critical scenario, marked by the ongoing conflict, FACE expresses its full solidarity with the long-standing and strategic partners of the aluminium industry in the GCC (Gulf Cooperation Council), as well as with the citizens of the region affected by the hostilities.
FACE press release is available here.
