Recently, the European Aluminum Association has proposed three measures to support the recovery of the automotive industry. Aluminum is part of many important value chains. Among them, the automotive and transportation industries are consumption areas of aluminum, aluminum consumption accounts for 36% of the entire aluminum consumer market within these two industries. Since the auto industry is facing severe reductions or even suspension of production since the COVID-19, the European aluminum industry (alumina, primary aluminum, recycled aluminum, primary processing and final products) also faces great risks. Therefore, the European Aluminum Association hopes to recover the auto industry asap.

At present, the average aluminum content of cars produced in Europe is 180kg (about 12% of the weight of the car). Due to the lightweight feature of aluminum, aluminum has become an ideal material for vehicles to run more efficiently. As an important supplier to the automotive industry, European aluminum manufacturers rely on the rapid recovery of the entire automotive industry. Among the key measures for the EU automotive industry to support the restart of the automotive industry, European aluminum producers will focus on the following three measures:

1. Vehicle Renewal Plan
Due to market uncertainty, the European Aluminum Association supports a car renewal plan aimed at stimulating the sale of environmentally friendly vehicles (clean internal combustion engines and electric vehicles). The European Aluminum Association also recommends scrapping value-added vehicles, as these vehicles are completely scrapped and recycled in Europe.
Car renewal plans should be implemented quickly to restore consumer confidence, and the timing of the implementation of such measures will only further delay the economic recovery.

2. Quickly reopen the model certification body
Currently, many model certification agencies in Europe have closed or slowed down operations. This makes it impossible for car manufacturers to certify new vehicles that are planned to be put on the market. Therefore, the European Aluminum Association requested the European Commission and member states to make efforts to quickly reopen or expand these facilities to avoid delaying the review of new car regulatory requirements.

3. Start charging and refueling infrastructure investment
To support the demand for alternative power systems, a pilot program of “1 million charging points and gas stations for all EU models” should be launched immediately, including high-power charging stations for heavy vehicles and hydrogen fuel stations. The European Aluminum Association believes that rapid deployment of charging and refueling infrastructure is a necessary prerequisite for the market to accept alternative power systems to support the dual goals of economic recovery and climate policy.

The launch of the above investment will also help reduce the risk of further reduction of aluminum smelting capacity in Europe, because during the financial crisis, this risk is permanent.

The above measures to support the recovery of the automotive industry are part of the European Aluminum Association ’s call for a sustainable industrial recovery plan and provide a set of specific measures that the EU and member states can take to help the aluminum industry weather the crisis and reduce The value chain brings the risk of more serious impact.