Mario Conserva (FACE): Uncertain aluminium supplies for Europe
“The recent attacks by Israel and the United States against Iran have highlighted the EU’s vulnerability, with the risk of disruptions to energy and aluminium supplies, particularly in the event of a blockade of the Strait of Hormuz”, said our Secretary General Mario Conserva in the article “Uncertain aluminium supplies for Europe” published in the magazine A&L Alluminio e Leghe.
“Dependence on southern maritime routes makes an urgent review of supply policies essential, in order to safeguard the sector’s economic security and ensure competitiveness in a global context marked by aggressive competition. The EU’s structural deficit in primary aluminium exceeds 87% of demand, requiring around 8 million tonnes of imports each year. This is compounded by the risk of scrap flows to the United States, incentivised by tariff exemptions, and the restrictions linked to the war in Ukraine, which force reliance on longer, more costly and insecure routes”.
“To protect its economic security, the EU must keep all options open: reconsider bans and restrictions, liberalise imports of raw aluminium, prevent the outflow of scrap and strengthen recycling. Aluminium, both primary and secondary, is a critical and strategic raw material, and its availability today is a matter of economic security as well as competitiveness and ecological transition”, concluded Conserva.
The full article is available here.
