EUROFER Dismayed with Copenhagen Deal

The European Steel industry has expressed disappointment with a deal reached in Copenhagen that called for steel producers in the European Union to move to cut emissions by 30 percent.

 “The Copenhagen deal is a disappointment. We had hoped that an agreement in Copenhagen would have resulted in a global level playing field between industrial competitors worldwide”, said Gordon Moffat, EUROFER’s director general. “Until an agreement is reached which results in comparable efforts by industries worldwide the EU must maintain the measures foreseen to protect the competitiveness of European industry."

In a letter, EUROFER called for the EU to ensure the following:

• No unilateral increase of the EU's GHG target from 20-30 percent,

• In the implementation of the EU emissions trading directive, fully 100 percent free allowances, based on achievable benchmarks, for the European steel industry and other sectors at risk of carbon leakage,

• Compensation for ETS related increases in electricity prices in order to preserve steel recycling in Europe,

• No European financial support for climate change mitigation and adaptation measures to countries which do not agree to international monitoring of all their industrial GHG emissions,

• Increase of financial support for R&D of carbon lean technologies in the EU.