Category: Latest Updates

The Metals division of Andritz is working on a new furnace concept for manufacturing electrical steel, Kallanish hears from the Austria-based plantbuilder.

The focus is on a fully modular design that ensures quick installation, the company explains. The electrical steel produced in these furnaces offers improved efficiency and can be directly integrated into processing lines already supplied by Andritz, it notes.

Following the market introduction of the Sundwig MonoBlock, a 20-roll mill for the production of cold-rolled strip, Andritz now has the complete portfolio of multi-roll mills for production of electrical steel in foil thickness.

The company says it aims to establish itself as a complete solutions provider for the production of non-grain-oriented electrical steel.

To this purpose, in December, Andritz acquired a 51% stake in China-based Baoding Sanzheng Electrical Equipment, a supplier of solutions for the induction heating field located in Hebei Province, the country’s largest steel-producing province.

The integration of Sanzheng gives Andritz a complete portfolio of induction heating technologies, complementing the capability to deliver full-line solutions for electrical steel processing, galvanizing, annealing, and forging.

Another acquisition in the Metals division last year was Salico Group, headquartered in Italy and Spain, which specialises in advanced finishing equipment for metal flat strip processing.

In 2025, the Metals division of Andritz recorded order intake of €1.48 billion ($1.71 billion), down 13% versus 2024. Customer demand is increasingly shifted toward smaller-scale projects, modernisations and non-automotive applications, such as defence, it says.

The larger Andritz group, including Hydropower, Pulp & Paper, and Energy & Environment, achieved an order intake of €8.9 billion, marking an increase of 7.6% from the previous year.

 

The UK steel sector will remain uncompetitive without better government policy to protect it ahead of changes to safeguard quotas in other regions, panellists said at the recent Make UK conference in London, attended by Kallanish.

Peter Quinn, director of sustainability and environment, Tata Steel UK, told attendees the UK needs to be prepared for the “cliff edge” coming on 1 July when the EU’s new quota and tariff regime comes in. “We want to at least preserve what we’ve got now,” he noted.

Gareth Stace, director general, UK Steel, also warned of damage to the industry, “unless this government, because it’s now or never, does something really important and significant to change the fortunes of our sector”. Without action, it “will be a very, very different sector in the next few years”.

He also noted that concerns over energy and carbon costs, as well as procurement still need tackling, and if the government does not address those, “we are still dead in the water”. However, the new EU tariff-rate quota regime “blows everything else out of the water”.

If the UK government fails to respond and “give us a really good, robust and strong UK steel quota and safeguards from 1 July and address the uncompetitive business landscape, then we will not be the sector that even you know at the moment,” he warned.

Carles Rovira, chief executive at 7 Steel, argued “there is no reason UK steel production cannot be competitive”, noting the country will have the latest technology, using electric arc furnaces, skills and scrap.

“What we’re asking [from] government is to give us the same means other steel producers have to compete,” he asserted. He highlighted scrap barriers for 48 countries, making the material cheaper domestically. Other countries which have subsidies for energy should not be seen as “competitive”, he argued.

Meanwhile, Alasdair McDiarmid, assistant general secretary, Community Union, said: “We need to stop lurching from crisis to crisis. We’re in a hole [and] it seems like we’ve been in a hole for a very long time; we need to fix this once and for all.”

He expressed frustration to still be calling for the same support as when the Steel Council was first formed in 2015 after the SSI steelworks collapsed. “We defined what the industry needed at that time; there were five key priorities, action on energy prices, procurement, trade defence, reform of business rates and support for decarbonisation investment, and we’re now in 2026, 11 years on and these are still the priorities,” he lamented.

“We know what the problems are, we know what the solutions are, it’s very, very frustrating,” he added.

Meanwhile, Quinn described the ETS schemes in the UK and EU as “blunt instruments” that have not been effective in creating conditions to decarbonise “a very capital intensive business”.

“It was punitive, it was a cost for not decarbonising, but it didn’t help you to decarbonise, it just punished you for not doing it and the two things are different,” added Quinn.

Stace expressed concerns over the UK’s CBAM policy. “Unfortunately, within Treasury, CBAM is developing … but it’s going to achieve exactly the opposite of what it should,” he warned.

He highlighted UK Steel calculations show Chinese steel will pay less in CBAM costs than steel produced in the UK. “It should have been the other way round and it’s astonishing that we’ve got less than a year to go before it comes into effect on the 1st of January next year and yet Treasury is working through a policy that’s going to damage us even further,” he concluded.

 

Mandating low-emission steel use in the EU’s construction and automotive sectors would allow steel to gain a green premium that will be partially passed on to the price of final products. This predictability of future demand for low-emission material could absorb part of transition investment costs and push further decarbonisation investment decisions, the European Commission notes.

Earlier this week, the Commission published its Industrial Accelerator Act (IAA) legislative proposal, including a stipulation that 25% of steel volume procured for public projects launched from 2029 must be low-emission.

In its IAA impact assessment, the Commission points out there are at least 29 announced steel decarbonisation projects, with a combined potential capacity of additional 41 million tonnes/year of low-emission steel by 2030, that have not yet reached the final investment stage.

The proposed lead market measures could unlock up to €15.5 billion ($18 billion) in investments covering approximately 15% of the sector’s €100 billion total investment need by 2050, it adds in the document monitored by Kallanish.

“The measure will create a more stable and predictable domestic market for European producers, allowing them to secure long-term contracts for low-carbon materials in public works and supported sectors. This internal market stimulus is expected to offset any small decline in export volumes, reinforcing industrial utilisation and accelerating investment recovery,” the document notes.

“In addition, by slightly increasing domestic output and reducing exposure to highly concentrated foreign supply chains in the supported segments, the measure provides a modest economic-security gain, lowering vulnerability to sudden price shifts, coercive practices or export restrictions from dominant suppliers,” it adds.

In terms of how the measure impacts downstream sector competitiveness, “given the significant share of vehicle registrations supported by public support schemes, it is reasonable to expect that introducing low-carbon steel and aluminium requirements as a condition for accessing such support would strongly incentivise vehicle manufacturers to adopt low-carbon materials across a significant part (if not the entirety) of their product portfolio, particularly for models intended for the EU market,” the document notes.

“At the same time, there is a risk of losing competitiveness on third countries markets, especially if no similar low-carbon policies apply,” it adds. “Consequently, the absence of similar requirements in other world regions may put – in the short term – EU vehicle manufacturers in a condition of relative cost disadvantage and possible relocation of EU industry.”

“Moreover, the risk of capacity constraints in the low-carbon steel and aluminium supply-chain should not be neglected: the moderate low-carbon ambition tabled under this measure is therefore based on the existing pipeline of projects, to prevent that risk,” it says.

As low-carbon production scales up, premiums are projected to decline, reducing the competitiveness gap. In the medium term, the expansion of EU low-carbon capacity and declining green premiums are expected to strengthen the overall competitiveness of the European industrial base, enabling it to compete globally on both cost and sustainability performance.

Nevertheless, “the limited willingness to pay for the green premium depends on a range of policy measures to bolster the business case for decarbonisation investments, optimising net benefits,” the Commission notes. “Importantly, the lion’s share of demand generated by lead markets measures will continue to originate from private sector uptake and procurement.”

 

Corinth Pipeworks, which is owned by Cenergy Holdings, has bought Liberty Pipes Hartlepool, Kallanish learns from the companies.

Liberty launched an accelerated sales process for the pipe facility in February, selling the business to Corinth for £10 million ($13.4m).

The Asset Sale Agreement (ASA) was signed on 4 March between Corinth Pipeworks UK, a wholly owned subsidiary of Corinth Pipeworks (CPW), and the joint administrators of Begbies Traynor, appointed by the Business and Property Courts of England and Wales in London.

Corinth says the strategic acquisition marks an important milestone in the long-term growth plan of the pipework’s business by increasing its capacity and strengthening its position as a key supplier to the global energy sector.

The facility produces submerged arc welded (SAW) line pipe and has a capacity of 250,000 tonnes/year, providing pipe for the carbon capture sector, hydrogen infrastructure, LNG and oil and gas projects across the UK, EU, Americas, the Middle East and Asia.

Alexis Alexiou, chief executive of Cenergy Holdings, says: “With new LSAW pipe production capabilities – which are valued for their mechanical strength, high quality and suitability for critical high pressure uses – we’re expanding our potential. By merging our global expertise with a top tier mill and skilled workforce we can provide tailored solutions to clients worldwide.”

Corinth also says the facility is a significant asset for the UK and aligned with government priorities in infrastructure renewal and decarbonisation, through the use of hydrogen and carbon capture & storage. Trends in reshoring and national supply chain resilience further enhance its growth potential.

Ilias Bekiros, general manager of Corinth Pipeworks, adds: “Hartlepool LSAW facility’s strategic acquisition intends to double CPW’s LSAW capacity, enabling the company to undertake major projects worldwide. The move further strengthens CPW’s position as a leading manufacturer of pipes for demanding deep offshore applications, supported by an exceptional track record in the industry.”

 

A federal judge ordered the US government to begin the process of issuing billions of dollars in refunds to importers after the Supreme Court deemed the implementation of country-specific duties was illegal, according to court filings.

The order marks a victory in the first step for importers as they navigate an unprecedented refund process.

Judge Richard Eaton of the US Court of International Trade directed US Customs and Border Protection to finalize import entries without the tariffs issued under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act, which US President Donald Trump invoked to implement the global tariffs. Supreme Court justices in their decision said Trump exceeded presidential authority and determined president cannot rely on emergency powers to impose the tariffs.

Eaton also ordered US customs to review any entries that have previously been finalized to remove the tariffs, resulting in refunds.

“Customs knows how to do this,” Eaton said during a court hearing on March 4. “And the processes are in place to perform the liquidation of the entries and to issue the refunds.”

The order comes one week after a federal appeals court on March 2 denied a request from the US Department of Justice to delay the start of the refund process. The court’s decision allowed the Court of International Trade to begin determining the mechanics of refunds.

Importers have filed over 2,000 cases at the CIT. The number of entries filed that subject to the IEEPA tariffs between February 2025 to February 2026 was over 71 million, US Customs said in a court filing.

The US collected $142 billion in duties under the IEEPA tariffs in 2025, according to an analysis of Customs and Border Patrol data by the Yale University Budget Lab.

Importers of pig iron and iron ore stand to benefit from refunds, although other metals and energy commodities were exempt from the varying country-specific rates. Importers of certain agricultural products paid IEEPA tariffs until November 2025, when Trump exempted many of them after reaching trade agreements with over a dozen countries.

Eaton set another hearing for March 6, 2026, requesting updates from Customs on refund plans. It is possible the Trump administration could challenge or appeal the court’s order.

EUROMETAL President Alexander Julius and Director General Ricardo Silva were received yesterday in Brussels by the Türkiye Exporters’ Assembly (TIM) at its newly established Brussels office.

TIM is the umbrella organisation representing more than 150,000 exporting companies across all industries in Türkiye, including the steel and metals sectors. The opening of its Brussels office aims to strengthen dialogue with European institutions as well as with sectoral and industry associations.

During the meeting, TIM Director General Mehmet Tan introduced the organisation’s activities and priorities, and explored potential avenues for future cooperation with EUROMETAL. Mr. Mehmet Emin Kavlak, Deputy Brussels Representative of TIM, also participated in the discussions.

The exchange provided an opportunity to discuss the strong and longstanding trade relationship between the European Union and Türkiye, where Türkiye remains an important partner for both imports and exports.

Participants also discussed the evolving policy landscape affecting the steel industry, including decarbonisation pathways. Türkiye’s steel sector was highlighted for its relatively high share of electric arc furnace (EAF) production, which plays an important role in reducing the sector’s carbon footprint.

The meeting also touched on broader trade and policy issues, including the EU–Türkiye Customs Union framework, ongoing discussions related to EU–Türkiye trade relations (FTA negociations), and the importance of addressing global steel overcapacity while ensuring that trade measures remain consistent with WTO rules.

Both organisations agreed on the value of maintaining an open dialogue between European and Turkish stakeholders to support a competitive, transparent and sustainable steel value chain.

Several traders are turning to swaps to hedge volatile EU carbon prices as the bloc’s Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism creates new risks for importers of carbon-intensive goods, according to Rob McLeod, head of energy price risk solutions at global commodity trading house Hartree Partners.

This derivative instrument allows buyers to lock in fixed prices for CBAM certificates in advance, providing a direct hedge against price swings in the underlying EU Allowances market.

“CBAM swaps provide a clean and direct hedge but require a credit line,” McLeod said on a webinar on March 3. “A swap is a simple tool to lock in a fixed price level ahead of time.”

EUAs have experienced sharp moves in recent weeks as politicians increasingly focus on the economic damage from the EU Emissions Trading System, leading to a collapse in market confidence.

“EUAs can be exceptionally volatile, even in the short term. We can see moves of Eur20-30/mt over a 30- to 60-day period. That is not uncommon, which makes hedging more necessary,” McLeod added.

EUAs have slumped by more than Eur20/metric tons of CO2 equivalent in recent weeks after several member states called for watering down the EU ETS to boost the bloc’s industrial competitiveness. Platts, part of S&P Global Energy, assessed EUAs for the December 2026 contract at Eur73.80/mtCO2e on March 2.

Hedging strategies

CBAM swaps are derivative instruments that allow buyers to fix forward CBAM certificate prices. Under the structure, buyers agree to a fixed price and cash-settle at the end of the contract period against a CBAM index price.

The EU’s CBAM transitioned to its definitive phase from Jan. 1, 2026, marking the world’s first operational carbon border tax.

The CBAM swap market is showing signs of liquidity growth, with significant volumes already trading daily, according to McLeod.

Hartree Partners is an active participant in the EU ETS and is exposed to the bloc’s CBAM while also actively hedging EUAs for CBAM compliance.

This hedging strategy is used by exporters and importers of CBAM-covered goods to manage their exposure to CBAM certificates.

Importers of carbon-intensive goods from six sectors — aluminum, cement, electricity, fertilizers, iron and steel, and hydrogen — now face financial liability for their products’ embedded emissions, though the purchase of CBAM certificates reflecting the carbon content of their imports only starts in February 2027.

CBAM certificates are priced against EUAs, making carbon price volatility a key concern for companies importing covered goods into the EU.

Besides swaps, McLeod also outlined two more solutions for companies seeking to manage CBAM exposure, each with distinct advantages and limitations.

Using EUAs as a hedge appears straightforward given CBAM certificates are priced against the carbon allowances, but final CBAM pricing may diverge sharply from EUA values, creating basis risk, McLeod said.

Virtual certificates represent another option, mainly focused on spot purchases. This approach “eliminates basis risk” but generally requires “upfront payment,” limiting flexibility for companies managing cash flow, McLeod said.

European steel market participants are assessing the impact of the war in Middle East, with steelmakers and importers largely ambivalent about a direct impact on spot steel prices but suggesting that, alongside ongoing conditions in Europe, they could be supportive of current bullish supply-side dynamics.

Sources said that in terms of raw materials, they have not been disrupted, while they were mainly concerned in the future for high energy and freight costs, as shipping could continue around the Cape of Good Hope instead of the Suez Canal.

One Europe-based mill source anticipated potential shipping delays from Asia due to the conflict, increasing the risk of exceeding the safeguard quota and higher freight and insurance costs.

“I think another problem is that shipments from Asia may need 4-6 weeks longer,” the mill source said. “I know some companies that bought material for the end of Q2, and if the material arrives late in July, they could have a major problem.”

Similarly, a second EU mill source cited price increases due to uncertainty arising from the War, as well as longer-term regulatory measures impacting EU markets.

Nonetheless, several market participants suggested that although the war was adding further uncertainty to the market, it was also a supply-side driver and would not address the continued sluggishness of demand.

A European service center suggested he was shielded from any immediate impact to import prices attributed to higher freight rates and potential disruption, due to pivoting toward domestic suppliers ahead of the 2026 start date of the EU’s Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism. “There could be panic buying, and if the domestic market can increase, it will, as nobody could offer from abroad,” the service center source said. “But we aren’t buying anything on imports, so we aren’t too impacted.”

A non-EU mill source said that the Middle East conflict could create additional cost pressures to already high energy costs in Europe, adding further pressure to increase prices down the value chain.

“It will be interesting to see how higher prices and low actual demand will interact and what will be the dynamics between the two,” they said. “My opinion is that demand will limit further price increases during the year.”

According to Platts assessments, since the beginning of the year, HRC prices have increased Eur60/metric ton from Eur620/mt based ex-works Ruhr to Eur680/mt base ex-works Ruhr on March 3. This increase has been attributed to factors such as administrative requirements related to the CBAM and expectations regarding trade safeguards. Mills have reported improved margins during this period. Platts is part of S&P Global Energy.

With recent developments in the Middle East, the industry is currently evaluating whether these conditions will persist amid higher costs.

This week, Romanian long steel prices in the spot market have remained largely stable, mainly supported by the recent upward movement in import offers amid rising energy and freight cost expectations linked to the war in the Middle East. As import prices have moved higher, local prices have managed to hold their ground, while discounts have largely disappeared from the market.

Although overall demand in Romania remains slow, market participants report slightly better activity compared to previous weeks, with some Romanian traders securing purchases earlier in the week in anticipation of further price increases. Meanwhile, the sole domestic rebar producer, currently selling mainly from existing stocks, has reduced its offer levels in an attempt to stimulate sales, though market participants note that selling at these levels may prove difficult given the still high production costs.

As a result, the Romanian sole rebar producer has decreased its offers to €590-595/mt ex-works, down from €610/mt ex-works week on week, while in the spot segment workable rebar levels are still heard at €590-600/mt ex-warehouse.

Meanwhile, a similar stability has been observed in the wire rod spot market, with traders quoting unchanged offers at €585-590/mt ex-warehouse amid slow demand.

In the import market, increases have been observed from the majority of suppliers, although some have preferred to keep their offers stable or have temporarily withdrawn from the market. According to reports, the Bulgarian supplier sold some lots to Romania at the beginning of the week at €605-615/mt CPT, but later increased its rebar offers to €630-635/mt CPT. Meanwhile, the Hungarian supplier has opted to keep its offers unchanged week on week, with its levels heard at €625-630/mt CPT. Among non-EU suppliers, an Egyptian mill increased its offers in the last contract for March shipment to €495-500/mt CFR for rebar and €500-505/mt CFR for wire rod, up from €485-490/mt CFR and €495-500/mt CFR, respectively. However, no fresh offers have been heard this week as the supplier is reported to be assessing the market situation, with new quotations for April shipments expected next week. Similarly, Turkish suppliers have increased their rebar offers to €485-500/mt CFR, compared to €475-485/mt CFR previously, based on an exchange rate of €1 = $1.16 and estimated freight costs of €15-20/mt.

 

Italy and France called on the European Commission to accelerate reforms of the EU’s Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism and its Emissions Trading System, warning that current proposals fall short of protecting the bloc’s energy-intensive industries from unfair competition and global overcapacity.

Italy’s enterprise minister Adolfo Urso and French industry minister Sébastien Martin signed a joint declaration at the third Franco-Italian Industrial Cooperation Forum in Rome on March 3, outlining a common position on European industrial policy.

On the EU’s emissions trading system, Italy and France called for a comprehensive review to improve the stability and predictability of ETS prices, arguing this is essential for maintaining competitiveness in energy-intensive industries.

The ministers said that CBAM requires more comprehensive changes than those proposed by the European Commission in December, with particular concerns over the planned 2028 implementation date and gaps in sectoral coverage.

“We need a more coherent and more competitive Europe. There is no more time to waste: we must act immediately to save European industry,” Urso said at the forum, held under the framework of the Quirinale Treaty between the two countries.

The joint statement also said that any CBAM reform must be completed rapidly alongside ETS changes.

The European Commission is scheduled to undertake a review of its compliance market in the third quarter of this year, with items such as free allocation, the Market Stability Reserve and sectoral expansions on the table.

Under current rules, free allocations are set to be phased out completely by 2034 for sectors covered by the EU’s Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism.

The ministers welcomed the Commission’s Dec. 17 proposal to simplify CBAM but said the extension to downstream sectors covering 180 products requires thorough review to ensure protection of all strategic EU supply chains. They expressed concern that the measure’s planned entry into force on Jan. 1, 2028, comes too late to address current competitive pressures.

Carbon price decline

European carbon prices have decreased more than Eur20/mt since mid-January as persistent calls from EU politicians for reforming the EU ETS have led to a collapse in market confidence.

Platts, part of S&P Global Energy, assessed December 2026 EUAs at Eur73.64/mtCO2e on March 3.

Officials from several member states, including Italy, Germany, France, Czechia and Slovakia, called for an overhaul of the bloc’s carbon market, arguing that current rules undermine industrial competitiveness.

The ministers criticized the commission’s proposed Temporary Decarbonization Fund as limited in scope and duration, with uncertain financial coverage and a narrow range of eligible products to compensate for the loss of competitiveness resulting from reduced free ETS allowances.

They highlighted the exclusion of the cement sector from both the fund and reformed ETS indirect cost compensation mechanisms as requiring urgent correction.

In December, the European Commission said it would establish a temporary decarbonization fund using revenues from CBAM to support domestic manufacturers with high export exposure.

“We reiterate the need for real and effective support for European exporters,” the statement added.

The ministers also raised concerns about the commission’s proposal to include pre-consumer metal scrap among CBAM precursors, warning this could create implementation problems due to difficulties distinguishing pre-consumer from post-consumer scrap. They said the inclusion could prove counterproductive for European low-emission steel production and proper market functioning.