European Aluminium has voiced sharp frustration after the European Commission again delayed measures on scrap metal exports and replaced a previously proposed export duty with a ban on sales to non‑OECD markets, sources indicated on 11 September 2026.
The industry representative said the Commission’s original proposal for export duties has been set aside in favour of a new restriction banning sales to non‑OECD destinations, a change that European Aluminium regards as both a substitution and a further postponement of action.
European Aluminium described the development as a source of irritation for the sector. The organisation told reports that the revised measure will now be expected no earlier than 2027, prolonging uncertainty for businesses that had anticipated the earlier timetable.
While the group said it supported the Commission’s broader efforts to tackle the underlying problem, it made clear that the switch from duties to a market ban and the additional delay had provoked dissatisfaction among members, according to the published report.
The switch in policy instruments marks a notable shift in the Commission’s approach as reported. European Aluminium highlighted the substitution of duties with a ban on sales to markets outside the OECD, and flagged that the implementation date had been pushed back to no earlier than 2027.
Change of approach
European Aluminium’s account, as carried by reports, emphasises that the Commission has abandoned the export duty avenue that had been discussed previously. The organisation framed the replacement measure, a ban on exports to non‑OECD markets, as a materially different tool from an export tax.
The representative body indicated that the altered instrument and its later effective date will affect planning for firms that trade in scrap and secondary aluminium feedstocks. The report noted the later timetable without providing further operational details.
Industry response and next steps
The published item records industry frustration but also a stated willingness to back Commission efforts in principle. European Aluminium said it supported the Commission’s attempt to address the matter, while nonetheless objecting to the timing and the form of the intervention.
The report gives the Commission’s decision and the industry reaction as the principal facts. European Aluminium’s remarks, as summarised in that item, present a mixture of support for policy intent and displeasure with the policy shift and delay.
The organisation’s comments underline continuing uncertainty for traders and processors who had been preparing for changes in export regulation. The reported expectation that the revised measure will not take effect before 2027 implies a significant postponement from previously anticipated timetables.
European Aluminium’s statement, reported on 11 September 2026, thus frames the immediate issue for the aluminium sector as one of timing and regulatory design. The group’s reaction as published suggests it will press for clarity on the Commission’s final proposals and their implementation schedule.
Those are the principal points recorded by reports on 11 September 2026. The account identifies the substitution of an export duty with a ban on sales to non‑OECD markets and records European Aluminium’s clear frustration that the measures have been delayed until at least 2027.