EU vetos move to mitigate climate change impact on energy price

Euometaux: A key part of the EU’s climate change policy – the Emission Trading System (ETS) – could destroy the economic viability of Europe’s non-ferrous metals industries. The European Parliament’s Environment Committee recognized the impact of CO2 costs passed into electricity prices (indirect effects) as one of the criteria for carbon leakage, as it has a large negative effect on the competitiveness of energy intensive industries. Therefore, it is inexplicable that the Committee vetoed provisions for a legal mechanism to address this problem.

“By vetoing solutions to the large electricity price increases caused by the ETS, Europe will export jobs and import energy intensive products with a higher greenhouse gas content. Today’s vote opens the door to a significant delocalisation of energy intensive industries, like ours, to regions without restrictions on greenhouse gas emissions”, says Guy Thiran, Secretary General of Eurometaux, the trade association for the non-ferrous metals industries in Europe with 450 000 employees.

The ETS has both direct and indirect effects on the energy intensive industries, such as the production of metals like aluminium, zinc, copper or nickel. The direct effects relate to the emissions of greenhouse gases from the production process for making the non-ferrous metals. Eurometaux welcomes the wide support in the European Parliament to give free allocation of emission allowances for direct emissions to trade-exposed, energy intensive industries.

Ni compounds added to EU dnagerous substances list

Danish PR: After 10 years of hard work Denmark has succeeded in getting 117 carcinogenic nickel compounds added to the EU list of dangerous substances.

Thereby the compounds may no longer be sold to consumers. The compounds are now also covered by severe working environment limitations, including demands for substitution. The new regulation is the result of a risk assessment of nickel and nickel compounds that Denmark has carried through on behalf of EU and which has documented that the compounds are carcinogenic.

This is a reality after the Member States today have granted the Commission a mandate to add a long list of dangerous compounds to the list of dangerous substances in directive on dangerous substances.

“I am extremely happy that we have succeeded in convincing the EU that these nickel compounds are carcinogenic and should be banned. This is a good day. We must work together to limit the use of dangerous chemicals”, says Danish Minister of Environment Troels Lund Poulsen (Liberal).

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Nickel Institute response: The Nickel Institute believes the conclusion reached by the EU to classify certain nickel substances using read-across and based solely on solubility in water, is not scientifically sound. 

Stephen Barnett, president of the Nickel Institute, commented: “A simple example of why the methodology used is incorrect would be to compare sodium chloride and sodium cyanide. They are both water-soluble substances with similar chemical structures. People deliberately add sodium chloride (table salt) to their food, but sodium cyanide is a deadly poison and even in the tiniest quantities will kill you. Classifying both substances equally is clearly nonsense”.

He continued: “Because of the complexity, in March of this year, our industry convened an independent panel of international experts to look at the criteria and methodology used to produce the nickel classifications. The panel members concluded, on the basis of their professional and expert examination, that the criteria and methodology used in this case was not sufficient for a regulatory decision.”

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Eurometaux comment: Paola also identified a press release from DEPA (see below), which raises further concerns. In particular, it should be noted that, although DG ENV has stated that “the nickel classification entries would only trigger a change of labelling and certainly no ban”, the press release demonstrates the opposite. The reaction of DEPA is,  furthermore, in clear opposition to the main aim of REACH, namely science (risk) based decision making. 

Please note that this situation sets a very dangerous precedent for the metals industry at large. 

PT Timah invests in solders and tin chemicals production

Jakarta Post: State mining company PT Timah, the world's second largest tin producer, may produce tin derivative products next year and sell them directly to industries, anticipating a continued drop in tin prices.

"Anticipating low tin prices next year, we will sell our tin products to end-users instead of traders. We will also boost selling of derivative downstream value-added products like tin solders," said Timah Corporate Secretary Abrun Abubakar.

Timah has begun to limit selling its basic product to traders since the last quarter of the year, he added.

In a bid to help boost production of higher priced tin products, Timah will go ahead with construction of two downstream factories.

Timah will complete building a tin solder factory in Kundur island, Riau Province, in December this year, he said. Timah plans to spend up to Rp 40 billion to build the factory with a production capacity of 2,100 tons of solder wires a year.

Abrun added the company has just completed the design of a factory for tin chemical, which is used mostly in the plastics industry. "We will begin the construction of this factory next year and we expect to finish it within less than one year." The tin chemical factory is designed to have a 30,000 ton capacity, but in early phases of production, the company would only aim for 10,000 tons, he added. Timah has allocated about Rp 300 billion for this factory.