The Industrial Accelerator Act (IAA) proposal presented on March 4 by the European Commission represents “yet another missed opportunity to strengthen the competitiveness of the European steel industry”, according to Antonio Gozzi, president of the Italian steel producers association Federacciai, commenting on the new EU instrument aimed at accelerating industrial decarbonisation and supporting strategic sectors of the energy transition.
According to Gozzi, one of the main critical aspects of the proposal is the absence of “Made in Europe” criteria for steel, which are instead envisaged for other materials such as aluminium and cement.
In his view, the Commission believes the steel sector will already benefit from the new post-safeguard trade defence measures, but such tools - he underlined - are designed to address structural global overcapacity and cannot replace specific measures to support strategic European production, especially the most advanced projects in terms of decarbonisation.
Further concerns relate to ferrous scrap, considered a strategic resource for circularity and the green transition. According to the Federacciai president, the final text of the IAA has been weakened compared to earlier drafts, from which the measures aimed at promoting the use of secondary raw materials in Europe and strengthening the monitoring of scrap exports have been removed.
Uncertainties also remain regarding the classification of “low-carbon” steel. While the Commission has decided not to directly regulate the voluntary green steel label, it has failed to provide a consistent clarification on the methodology to be adopted. In this context, Federacciai reiterated that any criteria should be based exclusively on the actual product carbon footprint, avoiding mechanisms such as the so-called “scrap sliding scale”, which - according to Gozzi - would unfairly penalise electric arc furnace (EAF) production, which is among the most advanced in environmental and circularity terms.
Gozzi therefore expressed the hope that the European Parliament and the Council will intervene during the legislative process to address these gaps and strengthen the effectiveness of the measure, described as “a crucial tool for a strategic sector such as the European steel industry”.
As previously reported by SteelOrbis, in recent weeks the debate on the Industrial Accelerator Act has largely focused on the introduction of “Made in Europe” procurement rules for materials used in publicly funded projects in strategic energy transition sectors. However, divisions among EU member states persist: some countries support stricter requirements to protect European industry, while others fear potential negative impacts on procurement costs, investment and competitiveness.
Based on what has already emerged from previous coverage, the European steel industry has also recently warned that, without clear criteria on the origin of materials, there is a risk that funds earmarked for decarbonisation could end up supporting low-emission steel production outside the European Union, rather than strengthening the continent’s industrial base.
In this context, the remarks made by Federacciai fit into the broader European discussion on how to reconcile the climate transition with the protection of industrial competitiveness, an issue the steel sector considers crucial to underpin the significant investments required to produce low-emission steel.