EUROFER urges EU leaders to take effective measures to address energy crisis

In Europe, the current gas price of Euro 200/MWh is making it difficult for energy-intensive industries to maintain normalcy in operations.

"With the current gas price reaching about Euro 200/MWh, the situation is unbearable for the energy-intensive producers. The impact of the volatility and extremely high levels of gas and electricity are provoking instability. The consequences are already being felt in the industry, with plant shutdowns and reduction in production in many sectors, with the consequence of job losses. The competitiveness of the European companies is direly threatened," EUROFER stated in a recent release.

EUROFER has once again urged the EU leaders to implement effective measures such as:

• Eliminating the impact of gas prices on industrial competitiveness
  
  
• Separating electricity prices from gas prices
  
  
• Building a more flexible structure of state aid
  
  

In particular, it is about the quick approval of anti-crisis state aid in the current circumstances. For example, such requirement as negative EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization) must be removed, as it means the aid would arrive late.

As part of the EU's initial package of emergency measures to curb electricity prices, the European Commission introduced a single electricity price limit for the entire market at around Euro 180/MWh.

However, EUROFER does not believe that this decision is swift enough to bring down energy prices and to preserve millions of jobs in industrial sector such as in steel that are under pressure of global competition.

~Inputs from GMK Center