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Renewable Energy Directive
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The deployment of large volumes of renewables represents a key challenge for the management of the grid and needs to be balanced also with the objective of providing competitive and secure energy. In this sense, it is important to accelerate the integration of renewables in the market in
order to foster cost-effective solutions. The regulatory framework shall address and minimize the impact of regulatory costs related to decarbonisation and the promotion of renewables on the competitiveness of energy intensive-industries and promote innovative low carbon solutions that can contribute to the energy and climate targets, taking exposure to international competition fully into account.
Due to the high share of energy costs in total production costs, EU steel companies operate processes very close to the thermodynamical limits of the current technologies. Deeper emissions reductions are only possible with the deployment and roll out of breakthrough technologies (including steel recycling, carbon capture utilisation and storage, process integration, and electricity/hydrogen-based metallurgy) that require, among others, access to abundant and competitive low carbon energy sources, including hydrogen and electricity. The application of these technologies at industrial scale will contribute to creating new business models where energy carriers will play a key role (e.g. cooperation between the steel and chemical sector to convert carbon reach gases into fuels or feedstocks and/or to replace carbon with hydrogen as reducing agent in steelmaking).
Therefore, it is essential that all low carbon energy sources that can contribute to emissions reductions are promoted according to the technology neutrality principle and regardless of their specific use (i.e. as energy carrier or as reducing agent).
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Brussels, 10 September 2024 – The Draghi Report thoroughly identifies the bottlenecks to both the EU industry's decarbonisation and competitiveness. The proposed recommendations for energy-intensive industries, including on energy, trade, carbon leakage, financing and lead markets, should be integrated into the upcoming Clean Industrial Deal and implemented with concrete measures as a matter of urgency. Alignment across different policies is crucial, and should be accompanied by sector-specific initiatives to enable the transition of each industry including steel, asks the European Steel Association.
Brussels, 05 September 2024 – The latest developments in the steel sector and across critical value chains are worrying signs of a steady deterioration, endangering the survival and the transition of steelmakers and their key manufacturing customers in Europe, such as automotive. A Clean Industrial Deal including swift and radical measures in EU industrial, energy and trade policies, is the last chance to ensure Europe’s prosperity and shield European industry from cheap imports driven by third countries’ unfair trade practices, overcapacity and lower climate ambition, urges the European Steel Association.
Brussels, 25 July 2024 – Major indicators in the European steel market show a steeper-than-expected downward trend, further impacting the outlook for this year and the next. Poor demand conditions, driven by ongoing factors such as high energy prices, persistent inflation, economic uncertainty and geopolitical tensions, are exacerbated by a manufacturing crisis affecting the largest steel-using sectors, including construction and automotive. According to EUROFER’s latest Economic and Steel Market Outlook, apparent steel consumption is further deteriorating. After a slump (-3.1%) in the first quarter of 2024, its rebound for the full year has been revised downwards (to +1.4% from +3.2%), as well as for 2025 (+4.1% from +5.6%). Similarly, output in steel-using sectors, after a decline in the first quarter (-1.9%), is projected to experience a deeper-than-expected recession (-1.6% from -1%). A recovery is anticipated only in 2025 (+2.3%). Steel imports continue to show historically high shares (27%).