Page 9 - Best of 2019 English

higher than they are today. The steel industry – like other energy-intensive industries – is engaged in global competition. But because the interna- tional competition is unaware of such additional burdens arising from climate protection efforts, it’s still impossible to pass them on to customers as things stand now.
This is the consequence of socially desired deci- sions and government actions that have the char- acter of a command economy rather than being based on economic necessity. So political measures are now needed to enable low-CO2 production to ensure that European industry does not fall so far behind in global competition that its existence is threatened.
There are a number of conceivable options here: there could be a climate levy on end products for consumers or a border compensation system for steel imports to the EU, for example. But we prefer a market-based approach: steel processors and
the automotive industry ought to be able to derive concrete economic benefits from the use of low- CO2 steel, so a procurement decision of this type resulting in additional costs could be offset against CO2 reduction obligations. This would give our customers concrete economic benefits.
STIL: That sounds quite complicated. Even if we don’t like it: wouldn't the simplest thing be to shut down steel production in the EU?
Prof. Fuhrmann: According to the not-in-my- backyard principle, the policy would then be to make the emissions issue disappear at the expense of unemployment, prosperity, the industrial base and carbon leakage. But to be perfectly objective: despite the investment required here too – and the additional costs of operating in hydrogen mode
– gradual decarbonization of the steel industry is the most economical option for CO2 reduction as compared to other sectors. So the steel industry should be at the top of the priority scale, if we’re going to be rational about all this.
Germany has about a 2.3 % share of global CO2 emissions. The global climate will not be saved even if large sections of the industry are shut down in this country – and hundreds of thousands of people become immediately unemployed.
China or India – to name just two rapidly devel- oping countries – cannot be expected to follow our example. If we declare ourselves a model region, we are doomed to success. We have to swim through a raging torrent, but we mustn’t drown
in it – because if we do, there will be no one still standing on the shore will jump in after us.
STIL: In economically less favorable times, it is common for merger ideas for the steel industry to re-appear. Can you comment on this type of approach?
Prof. Fuhrmann: Over the past 22 years of entre- preneurial independence, there is absolutely no doubt our corporation has written a success story.
Dr. Bernd Althusmann (l.), Minister for Economic Affairs in the state of Lower Saxony, also showed great interest in this important future-oriented project
Salzgitter AG is an internationally competitive group that is sound in terms of its finances and balance sheet, and it is well positioned technolog- ically.
We’re not dogmatic, we don’t refuse to cooper- ate – as demonstrated by our long-standing joint venture EUROPIPE and our involvement in HKM. The precondition here is always an economically viable concept for mutual benefit. To this day,
we have not yet seen a merger concept with a competitor in the steel industry that would have shown us the way to a recognizably advantageous perspective. However, I cannot and must not rule out the possibility of this happening one day; if only because our economic environment and in particular our regulatory environment is changing more radically than it ever has since 1945, as we have just been discussing.
STIL: How do you perceive the current business year?
Prof. Fuhrmann: The year will not be easy. To stay with the metaphor: the storm that began to brew in 2019 will continue to rage. The flight through it will remain turbulent! We’re well prepared, and we set out very early on to posi- tion the Group and its companies with a view to the future – not with visions, but with concrete measures. Our corporate substance remains solid, my colleagues on the Executive Board and in the management of our companies, along with myself, have a great deal of experience of economic cycles, so we’re keeping calm: we have a stable anchor shareholder in the state of Lower Saxony, as well as the support of a competent Supervisory Board. We will continue to pursue our course and shape a successful future.
SALZGITTER INSIDE 9
Photo: Peter Lenke