The European Parliament has approved measures to replace protective coatings made of steel
The plenary session of the European Parliament on Tuesday voted overwhelmingly in favor of the proposed regulation of steel trade, designed to replace protective measures.
The new resolution must now be officially approved by the Council before coming into force on July 1, parliament said in a note. Earlier, the Council clarified that the law would enter into force if Parliament adopted the text developed by the Council after preliminary approval of the rules of procedure with Parliament in April, Kallanish said. This suggests that the approval is a simple formality.
The distribution of quotas by country remains unconfirmed, as the European Commission is still negotiating with trading partners to ensure that this measure meets WTO requirements.
The Commission should take into account the import share that dominated the European Union steel market in 2013, before the global overcapacity emerged. It should also take into account current and future free trade agreements. The situation with Ukraine as a candidate country, which has particular security concerns, will also be considered.
The total annual volume of quotas is set at 18,345,922 tons, with a 50% duty exceeding the quota. The "melting and pouring" requirement will be met, and the Commission needs to approve rules on the types of evidence required by August 31. From July 1, 2026 to June 30, 2027, the unused quarterly quota volumes will be postponed to the next quarter, after which a review will be carried out.
From October 1, 2027, the European Commission will need to take into account information received from importers about the country of melting and bottling when determining the country distribution of tariff quotas.
The resolution was approved by 606 votes in favor and 16 against, with 39 abstentions.
The Eurofer Metallurgists Association welcomed the parliamentary approval. "At a time of growing geopolitical uncertainty and market distortions, this is an important signal that the EU is ready and must act to protect its industrial base, security and autonomy. Now there should be no delays in making this measure effective by July 1, 2026, when the current protective measures expire," says Axel Eggert, CEO of the company.
The Association reiterated its call to extend this measure to steel-containing products in order to strengthen the broader European industrial value chain.
Author: Adam Smith
Kallanish.com