Eurometaux wishes to re-state the industry’s need for secondary raw materials in Europe and to
respond to the press release issued by Eurometrec on 25 March in which it claims that the socalled
“metals consuming industry” lacks interest in buying metal scrap. Consumption should
not be confused with pre-processing and recycling!

The recycling value chain is composed of four main stages, namely collection, dismantling, pretreatment
and refining/recycling. Recycling only takes place when the last step is reached.
Eurometaux represents this final step, i.e. the industrial refining/recycling operators, a term
that should not be confused with “the metals consuming industry”. These operations can only
be viable if economies of scale are possible in view of the significant investments and technology
needed. The first steps of the value chain – collection and dismantling – whilst a pre-requisite to
any recycling, require much less investment as compared to recycling. Only a few players are
involved in pre-treatment and refining/recycling, but many more in collection and dismantling.

The whole value chain is essential to ensure a valuable and sustainable EU recycling industry.
The European recycling industry has recently significantly increased its intake of recyclates, and
continues to make significant investments to boost its recycling capacity, for example for
complex (precious) metals-bearing fractions and batteries and aluminium recovery from bottom
ash in waste incineration. And this notwithstanding the fact that the amount of scrap legally
exported to non-OECD countries continues to increase. It should be noted that rare earths are
not yet recycled. Eurometaux therefore believes that Eurometrec’s claims are isolated market
elements taken out of the broader recycling value chain context.

Eurometaux is very concerned about the biased statements repeatedly made by Eurometrec with
regard to the metals recycling industry, and will prepare an in-depth analysis of both the
European recycling market and industry so as to avoid any further misunderstanding among
stakeholders.
Eurometaux is the Brussels-based EU association of the non-ferrous metals industry,
representing the main EU and international metals producers, EU and international metal
commodity groups and national metal federations. The industry covers base metals (Al, Cu, Pb,
Ni, Zn, Sn), precious metals (Au, Ag, PGM´s) and technical metals (e.g. Co, W, Cr, Mo, Mn),
manufactured from both virgin and recycled raw materials.

For further information, please contact:
Eurometaux – European Association of Metals
Guy Thiran, Secretary-General Tel. +32 2 775 63 10 E-mail: mailto:thiran@eurometaux.be
Annick Carpentier Tel. +32 2 775 63 14 E-mail: mailto:carpentier@eurometaux.be