US and EU aluminium associations highlight need for global arrangement

“The US aluminium industry has announced more domestic investment over the past two years than the prior several decades combined,” said Charles Johnson, president & CEO of the Aluminum Association. “That’s why it is so important that the US government reaches a politically sustainable arrangement with the EU to support continued growth of low carbon aluminium production here at home. We appreciate the work of Ambassador Tai and the full USTR team on this issue and look forward to continued engagement.”

The letter underscores the need for the Global Arrangement to address both decarbonisation and market behaviour to best support the aluminium industry on both sides of the Atlantic.

The letter states: “As trade relations deteriorate worldwide, any restrictions among long-standing and responsible partners will only harm aluminium producers worldwide. A well-designed [Global Arrangement] agreement should recognise and incentivise the low carbon, market-driven aluminium industries in [Global Arrangement] party countries ensuring a level-playing field within the GSA as regards climate-related costs. Further, the agreement should set reasonable targets and benchmarks for non-party countries so that they can join the agreement, or face measures for high carbon, non-competitive imports. This will ensure that non-party countries do not jeopardise aluminium production in [Global Arrangement] member countries.”

The association leaders also stressed the importance of “timely and effective delivery” of the Global Arrangement by October 2023.

Read the full letter here and below. Learn more about the Aluminum Association’s activity on global trade at www.aluminum.org/trade.