German states form new steel alliance to defend industry prospects

Source: Xinhua| 2018-10-23 20:30:45|Editor: mmm
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BERLIN, Oct. 23 (Xinhua) -- Six German states have formed a new "Alliance of Steel States" in a joint bid to defend the future prospects of the century-old industry, German media reported on Tuesday.

Saarland, North Rhine-Westphalia, Brandenburg, Lower Saxony, Bremen and Hamburg make up the six states that have joined.

The charter of the alliance was signed by regional government representatives during Germany's first National Steel Summit, which drew 2,500 guests, including senior policy makers and industry executives, in the western city of Saarbruecken, according to Berliner Morgenpost.

The conference was convened by the German Steel Federation lobby group, the metalworkers' trade union IG Metall, and local steel producers under the motto "Strengthen steel. Secure the future".

Saarland's economy minister Anke Rehlinger said the goal of the summit was to join forces to preserve a strong steel producing location for the future in Germany and Europe. Rehlinger argued that past experience had showed that achieving this goal required a "more coordinated and strategic approach" than the one currently adopted by the German steel producing states.

For the SPD politician, the large number of visitors recorded at the summit demonstrated the importance of the steel industry in Germany, as well as underscoring that many employees were concerned about the challenges it faced.

German Steel Federation president Hans Juergen Kerkhoff described steel as the basis for internationally-oriented value chains.

"Like a seismograph, steel feels how global developments also determine regional perspectives," Kerkhoff said. By uniting in the Steel Alliance, however, the industry would now be able to speak with an "effective and loud voice" in Brussels and Berlin.

A key demand made by the alliance at its foundational meeting was for the industry to be treated fairly in the context of the European Union's (EU) market for emissions certificates and the research and innovation strategy of the bloc. The charter emphasizes that steel would remain an indispensable resource in a world with lower carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions.

In order for steel to meet its potential to play a significant part in the transition to a greener economy, more grants and incentives were needed under the framework of the EU's next multi-year research program when the ongoing "Horizon 2020" scheme ends. In particular, Brussels was urged to offer its assistance in the development of new technologies and processes with a smaller emissions footprint such as hydrogen-powered steel production.

IG Metall president Joerg Hofmann warned that steel producers were confronted with far-reaching structural changes which could only be managed successfully with innovation and the help of policy makers. He consequently welcomed the establishment of the alliance as an important step to improve the outlook of the sector and its 85,000 employees in Germany.

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