Recyclers push back after US and EU press for aluminium export restrictions

In a similar tack in the US, Michigan Congresswoman Haley Stevens has introduced the Secure Aluminum Supply Chains Act, ‘which would direct the US International Trade Commission to investigate the national and economic security risks posed by US aluminium scrap exports to adversarial nations’.

Stevens argues that, while US manufacturers rely heavily on scrap aluminium as an affordable and energy-efficient input, large volumes leave the country ‘including exports that may be supplying Chinese industries that seek to topple our manufacturing economy here at home’.

The Act directs the commission to conduct a comprehensive investigation into exports to countries of concern and entities controlled by those countries. The study will examine the economic and national security risks posed by these exports and provide Congress with recommendations to strengthen domestic supply chains.

In response, ReMA, representing US recycling supply chains, says it wants to engage with Stevens, policy makers and industry stakeholders to provide a complete understanding of aluminium recycling, domestic market dynamics and exports.