Europe's top steelmakers including Salzgitter and SSAB have urged EU policymakers not to weaken the bloc's carbon market. They argue that dampening the EU Emissions Trading System would erode investment certainty and penalize companies that decarbonize faster. The steelmakers say the primary pressure on competitiveness comes from high electricity costs and global steel overcapacity, not from carbon prices. The warning comes ahead of a key reform of the EU ETS 1 scheduled for July 15, which will adjust the system to a 2040 climate goal of reducing emissions by 90% from 1990 levels. The steel companies want to keep the annual emission reduction pace at 4.4% through at least 2035 and avoid measures that artificially increase allowance supply. They also support maintaining the phase-out of free allowances alongside the Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism. The steelmakers stress that a strong ETS combined with a fully implemented CBAM can reinforce Europe's competitiveness and industrial renewal. They call for carbon market revenues to be channeled back into industrial decarbonization, especially for CBAM sectors. This stance from major industrial emitters signals that carbon pricing remains a credible policy tool for driving real decarbonization.
