We Aren't In This Alone

With sales over 5 trillion pounds per year and a workforce of 23 million people, the The Alliance for a Competitive European Industry (ACEI), is making it clear that it is against increasing the EU climate change objective beyond -20% until other countries also pledge to do the same.

"After the Copenhagen failure, the EU would be foolish to again unilaterally increase its GHG objective," says EUROFER's director general, Gordon Moffat. EUROFER is the European Confederation of Iron and Steel Industries whose revenues total about 200 billion euros. They directly employs 420,000 people and produce about 200 million tons of steel per year, Moffat said on Jan. 21

"Before Copenhagen, the Union affirmatively stated that it would only move to -30% if binding measures would be taken by other countries, comparable to the EU's -20%. Clearly no other country has followed Europe. It cannot therefore credibly justify a move to -30%."

Moffat sees dire results in the steel industry if the policy is changed. "Steel already has to reduce its emissions in 2020 compared to 1990 by over 40% due to the ETS. Another 10% would be fatal."