243% rise in US-bound aluminium scrap: METLEN calls for a more competitive Europe
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Europe’s aluminium scrap exports to the US have risen by 243 per cent, highlighting a growing concern over the continent’s access to strategic raw materials as it pursues recycling, decarbonisation and industrial competitiveness. Evangelos Mytilineos, Executive Chairman of METLEN, raised the issue, linking scrap outflows to the broader challenges facing European industry, energy security and strategic autonomy.
Aluminium scrap outflows raise industrial concerns
Mytilineos referred to the contrasting US tariff treatment of aluminium products, i.e., a 50 per cent tariff on primary aluminium, compared with zero tariff on scrap. With European aluminium scrap exports to the US increasing by 243 per cent, he questioned whether Europe could strengthen its industrial base while allowing valuable raw materials to leave the continent.
“Europe cannot pursue industrial competitiveness while allowing the resources needed for that industry to flow elsewhere,” he stated.
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The issue sits within a wider debate over Europe’s economic position. It has also depended on affordable energy, large export markets and the security umbrella of the US, conditions that can no longer be taken for granted. He emphasised the need to protect Europe’s industrial base and reinforce its competitiveness.
Energy security and Europe’s global role
Mytilineos also addressed the geopolitical tensions surrounding Ukraine and the prospect of discussions among major powers. Referring to Vladimir Putin’s proposal for a meeting with US President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi, he suggested it could effectively become a “new Yalta”. If Europe’s future and that of Ukraine were discussed without meaningful European participation, he argued, the continent would need to step up to reinforce its prominence as a global player.
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Energy storage is another key focus. METLEN has delivered numerous Battery Energy Storage Systems in the UK and recently inaugurated Greece’s largest standalone battery system. With a power capacity of 330 MW, the installation is also among the largest of its kind in Europe. Mytilineos highlighted storage’s importance to power supply security.
He asserted that Europe must complement its strengths with greater energy security and affordability, stronger industrial competitiveness and strategic autonomy. This also means recognising aluminium scrap as a strategic resource essential to Europe’s recycling ambitions, industrial resilience and low-carbon transition. Europe’s global influence, he suggested, will depend on turning its industrial capabilities, ideas and innovation into tangible strength while safeguarding the resources needed to sustain them.
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