Coronavirus, FACE to Italian Government: aluminium must be recognized as strategic for the production system

"Considering the measures that many countries are adopting to combat the COVID-19 pandemic, it is essential to recognize the key role of the entire aluminium value chain, both at European and national level, taking into account its strategic value for many activities in the production system and for sustainability policies" claimed Mario Conserve, Secretary-General of FACE - Federation of Aluminum Consumers in Europe - the association representing the interests of aluminium transformers and users in the EU.

Because of the COVID-19 emergency many sectors, such as foundries and companies operating in aluminium surface treatments, have already registered an around 50% production drop in March. Those losses will significantly increase following the closure of many companies decided by the Italian Government with a Decree, issued on March, 22, which excluded all metallurgy from the list of essential activities.

Trying to quantify the impact of this crisis on aluminium production in 2020, it is estimated that total aluminium consumption in Italy in 2020 should reach 1.6/1.7 million tons, which would bring the sector back at least 10 years.

The aluminium industry is a sector with strategic value for the entire European manufacturing sector, which in Italy has almost a thousand direct companies - mostly located in Lombardy (in particular in Bergamo, Brescia and in the south-east Milan), Piedmont and Emilia-Romagna, the most affected areas by the emergency - and a turnover of around 12 billion euros.

Over 90% of this value chain is composed by small and medium-sized companies that make a fundamental contribution to the entire Italian production system from public health to the food industry, from electronic instruments to means of communication, transmission and distribution of energy and means of transportation.

We support - Mr Conserve said - the decision of the Italian Government to stop the production of our companies, with the exception of those that ensure the continuity of primary production a choice aimed at protecting workers' health, as many of our companies did with the decision of dosing the plants even before the restrictive measures came into force. “Moreover, the aluminium companies that will remain open in order to ensure the continuity of the essential production chains, as required by the Decree, are taking all measures to protect the workers' health.

We believe - Mr Conserve concluded - that it is necessary to intervene with immediate and extraordinary measures for supporting all the companies of the sector, such as credit insurance, greater liquidity, financing for investment projects, tax incentives and subsidized loans."