Paris (Brussels Morning Newspaper) – French government spokesperson Sophie Primas said that France and other European nations will push for measures to safeguard the European steel industry against Chinese imports.
Primas reacted to steel manufacturer ArcelorMittal’s announcement that it plans to cut approximately 600 jobs across seven locations in France as a result of the challenges facing Europe’s steel industry.
“We have taken some first steps, notably on the question of quotas and the introduction of Chinese steel quotas, but we must go further and France is at the forefront,”
Prima told broadcaster CNews/Europe1.
What are the impacts of inexpensive Chinese imports?
Steel producers throughout Europe are facing the dual challenges of soaring energy costs and competition from inexpensive Chinese imports. Additionally, they now encounter increased tariffs on their exports to the United States.
Primas stated that China’s excessive steel production has contributed to the diminished competitiveness of the European steel sector.
On Sunday, finance ministry officials announced that France and steelmaker ArcelorMittal had reached an agreement for a 1.8 billion-euro investment aimed at reducing greenhouse gas emissions at a steel plant located in Dunkirk, northern France.
The French government’s subsidy package, potentially reaching 850 million euros, has already received approval from the European Commission and is a component of President Emmanuel Macron’s plan to reduce emissions at France’s 50 highest polluting sites.
On Wednesday, ArcelorMittal France North communicated a statement to its Works Council, stating that it had
“implemented all possible short-term adaptation measures, but the company must now consider reorganisation measures to adapt its business to the new market context and to ensure its future competitiveness”.
Arcelor’s decision comes after rival Tata Steel announced earlier this month that it would eliminate approximately 20% of jobs at its major facility in the Netherlands.
Criticism has arisen against ArcelorMittal due to its job cuts, despite receiving French government subsidies intended to support the reindustrialization of parts of the country.
“We have fought hard to ensure that the government and the European Union support the financing of the decarbonisation that is essential to ArcelorMittal,”
Stated Xavier Bertrand, the president of Hauts-de-France, a region that includes many of the sites impacted by the job cuts.
“It is time for the group to tell us when these investments will be made,”
He said in a post on X.
