Metal recyclers favour trading to local consumers but need export market access to remain profitable, delegates heard at the Bureau of International Recycling (BIR) convention in Gothenburg, Sweden, this week.
The potential of protectionist policymaking for scrap metal has grown in recent years, such as the EU considering potential trade measures on aluminium scrap exports — with a decision expected soon.
But trade restrictions are not needed as recyclers prefer local trade, and such measures would hamper metal recycling industries across Europe and the US, multiple speakers told delegates in Sweden this week.
"Material that finds its place in Europe stays in Europe, because that's the most logical business there is… exporting is a greater effort but we need that because the demand is simply not there," Mattias Rapaport, managing director of Swedish scrap firm Stena, said.
"Usually the most logical decision we're going to make is to sell to our neighbour because it's less risky, we are used to working with them, and many other factors," Emmanuel Katrakis, director of public and regulatory affairs at Belgian-headquartered recycler Galloo, said. "Very often there is a mismatch between what we are going to recycle and what our neighbour needs, and to bridge the gap we need access to local and global markets."
Multiple speakers noted similar trends for ferrous and non-ferrous materials with surpluses in many economies or a shortfall in local demand for certain grades.
Like Europe, the US produces a surplus of recycled materials across commodities so "global market access is critical" and attempts to manipulate that is "problematic and threatening" to the industry, Robin Wiener, president of US recycling industry group ReMA, said.
Restrictions on export trade would impact recyclers' profitability through a loss of trade and hamper investment, which is needed to improve availability of scrap qualities consumers want, delegates also heard.
"If we don't have the ability to invest in new equipment and processes, [consumers] will not be able to rely on supply because that supply will diminish," Wiener said.
Metal recycling industry groups like BIR and ReMA, and counterparts like Recycling Europe and the British Metals Recycling Association, have long voiced opposition to scrap export restrictions.
