Language is important, insists ferrous recyclers

A senior figure in the ferrous sector believes small changes such as how scrap is labelled can play a big part in how the industry is perceived by outsiders.

Shane Mellor, who heads BIR’s ferrous division, also praises the rebranding of ISRI into ReMA – the Recycled Materials Association.

Mellor was in Las Vegas when the major industry body unveiled its new title and look. ‘On my recent trip to the ReMA convention in Las Vegas, it was suggested that very few people – including those in posts of authority – understood what we do as an industry,’ Mellor writes in the latest BIR Mirror.

‘Many were amazed that recycled steel is, and has been for many hundreds of years, reformed and reconstituted over and over again into many items used by us all on a daily basis.’

Big impact

He insists that using the term ‘recycled steel’, underscored by the ISRI rebranding, is ‘extremely helpful’ in elevating the importance of the recycled, furnace-ready material. ‘These small changes to the terminology we use on a daily basis can have a big impact on how our industry is perceived by the outside world.’

Turning to the world recycled steel markets, Mellor notes they are ‘subdued’ and in search of more positive sentiment, with both demand and price levels suffering for furnace-ready feed and finished products alike.

Convention

One item on the agenda at BIR’s convention in Copenhgen later in the month is a presentation by Atilla Widnell of Navigate Commodities which will include an exploration of how supply and demand have evolved in key recycled steel markets over the past year, the impact of disruption to shipments in the Red Sea/Suez Canal and the effects (if any) of the Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism on European ferrous markets.

Rolf Willeke, statistics advisor to BIR’s ferrous division, reports in the Mirror that 630 million tonnes of recycled steel are used each year in global steel production. ‘The term “recycled steel” … reinforces the importance of our material for “green” steelmaking,’ he points out.

Usage down

Willeke reported that recycled steel usage was 12% lower in 2023 at 411.281 million tonnes, contrasting with a small increase of 0.2% in total crude production to 1.555 billion tonnes.

Only USA and India recorded higher recycled steel consumption in 2023. The usage figure represents verified data for 82.2% of global steelmaking.

China’s crude steel production was unchanged last year at 1 019.1 million tonnes. Although it remains the world’s largest user of recycled steel, China’s usage edged 0.8% lower year-on-year to 213.68 million tonnes.

Looking from the US, board member George Adams (SA Recycling) wonders if there will be enough recycled material available to meet a slight increase in demand.

‘There appears to be little recycled steel in reserve as dealers are … going hand to mouth on a monthly basis,’ he writes. ‘While the market will probably be weak over the summer months, there will still be demand. Dealers should eventually benefit from a potential recycled steel supply deficit if current trends continue.’