Assofermet urges EU ferroalloys safeguard revision
Italian steel trade association Assofermet is urging the Italian government to seek adjustments to the European Commission’s imminent safeguard measures on ferroalloy imports. The current proposal risks creating significant supply distortions for EU importers and downstream industries, it warns.
The new safeguards, covering ferromanganese, ferrosilicon, ferro-silico-manganese and ferro-silico-magnesium, are expected to be published in the EU Official Journal by 18 November. The investigation was launched in December 2024 following requests from several member states.
The association stresses that a 25% reduction in available import volumes would put considerable pressure on the market, given that European ferroalloy production has been insufficient to meet domestic demand for many years. Importers would suffer, but the repercussions would extend to steelmakers and foundries.
Assofermet recommends curbing the import reduction to 20% rather than the 25% foreseen in the draft regulation. It also calls for the introduction of a carry-over mechanism and a more realistic annual liberalisation rate of 2%. These adjustments would help limit market disruption while preserving the intended scope of the safeguard.
“Another cause for concern is the variable out-of-quota duty, which is envisaged in place of a predetermined fixed duty and will effectively result in a ‘blank’ duty at the time of customs clearance of the goods. This cannot be calculated at the time of signing the import contracts, as it is not known in advance to the parties concerned,” the association says in a note sent to Kallanish. The draft regulation does not specify how the out-of-quota duty would be calculated, which authority would determine it, where it would be published or how often it would be updated, leaving importers facing substantial uncertainty.
Another point of concern is the inclusion of Norway and Iceland in the measure despite their full participation in the European Economic Area (EEA) agreement. Assofermet argues that Norway in particular is a long-standing EU partner integrated into the EU’s single market and has historically been excluded from the EU steel import safeguard. “Closing the door on Norway now with regard to ferroalloys would not be the best choice politically,” Assofermet concludes.
After the member state vote was delayed from last Friday to this week, Eurofer urged the European Commission to adopt the proposed safeguard on ferro-alloy imports, describing it as the “last chance” for the industry to recover after years of import pressure.
Natalia Capra France
