Flags of India and European Union at European Council President Antonio Costa’s office in Brussels, Belgium.
Workers flatten metal scrap on a supply truck at an industrial area in Mumbai, India.
NEW DELHI, June 29 (Reuters) – India has asked the European Union for relief from planned curbs on metal scrap exports as steel and aluminium makers warn the move could tighten supplies, raise costs and undermine gains from a trade pact, industry and government officials said.
From May 2027, the EU’s revised waste shipment regulation is set to bar exports of non-hazardous waste to countries outside the OECD group of mostly developed economies, unless the EU approves them by November 2026.
The European Commission is also considering separate measures to limit aluminium scrap exports in plans delayed until September, EU industry sources said last week.
“The EU is a key supplier of high-quality ferrous scrap to India and any export curbs could tighten supply and raise costs for domestic steelmakers,” said Pankaj Chadha, chairman of the Engineering Export Promotion Council of India.
This year’s trade deal between India and the EU is set to take effect early next year. It does not provide direct relief from EU carbon emission levies, but New Delhi expects Brussels to avoid steps that pressure industries, officials said.
Industry representatives have raised the scrap curbs issue with India’s trade ministry, and India has formally applied to retain access to recyclable materials under the new regime, documents reviewed by Reuters show.
Export quotas rather than a complete ban could be one of the relief measures, said a government official who sought anonymity as he was not authorised to speak to media.
The trade ministry did not respond to a request for comment.
The world’s second-largest crude steel producer, India imported about 366,000 tons of aluminium scrap from the EU in 2025, and was the bloc’s top buyer in the first quarter of 2026, industry estimates show.
European Aluminium, which supports export curbs, said EU aluminium scrap exports hit a record 1.27 million metric tons in 2025, about 50% above 2019 levels.
It said a June export ban by the United Arab Emirates could worsen supply pressures, as India sources about a fifth of its scrap from Gulf states.
The Material Recycling Association of India warned growing “resource nationalism” could disrupt supplies of aluminium, copper and other recycled metals, boosting procurement costs and fuelling competition among importing nations.
Reporting by Manoj Kumar and Neha Arora; Additional reporting by Philip Blenkinsop in Brussels; Editing by Clarence Fernandez.
