En+ Group says London Metal Exchange Sustainability Plans Ignore Industry Concerns

LONDON, Dec. 18, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- En+ Group, the world's leading producer of low carbon aluminium and largest private sector generator of hydropower, notes the response published this week by the London Metal Exchange (LME) to industry feedback on its sustainability discussion paper, which En+ believes do not address the industry's concerns.

En+ believes the LME's announced plans represent a lost opportunity to drive industry-wide meaningful change as the world looks to 'build back better' from the impact of the global COVID-19 pandemic in 2021.

Lord Barker of Battle, Executive Chairman of En+ Group, said:

"We warmly welcome this long overdue first step by the LME into the low carbon age but it doesn't go far enough. London should lead global Green commerce and trading; timid actions don't cut it. So, we will be looking for further steps to make voluntary carbon disclosure mandatory for the LMEpassport and to create a new derivative contract for Low Carbon Aluminium."

In its formal response to the LME's consultation paper issued in September, En+ set out three core recommendations and called on the exchange to take a more active role in guiding the aluminium market towards a low-carbon future. En+ believes the following measures are critical to incentivising the decarbonisation of the aluminium industry, which is currently responsible for 2% of global carbon emissions, and where there is a huge disparity between the emissions from the production of low-carbon aluminium (produced with renewable energy) and aluminium produced with coal-fired plants.  

1. En+ called for mandatory carbon content and sustainability-related disclosure by metal producers (not voluntary) and this should be fully integrated with the existing trading system. This would mean that LME Passports, which are attached to warrants traded on the exchange, should include mandatory information about each aluminium product's carbon footprint, whether it is ASI certified and the source of energy used to produce it. 
2. En+ also warned that the LME's plans for a separate spot trading platform for low-carbon aluminium would not be effective in supporting a low-carbon transition. The platform proposed by the LME would not impact normal trading routes for the metal and is therefore unlikely to gain the widespread traction needed to spur a low-carbon transition. 
3. En+ called for the creation of a separate low-carbon aluminium futures contract. The establishment of a futures market - the vast majority of the trades on LME ? in low carbon aluminium would transform the way purchasers and producers of low-carbon aluminium are able to manage price risks. Moreover, it would ensure sustainability is truly integrated into the marketplace for LME-listed aluminium. 

En+ remains resolute in its mission to lead the aluminium industry into the low-carbon economy and looks forward to further engagement with the LME on this area. 

About EN+ Group

En+ Group is the world's leading international vertically integrated aluminium and power producer. The Company combines power plants with a total installed capacity of 19.6 GW (including 15.1 GW of hydro power assets), and 3.9 mt of annual aluminium production capacity (through a controlling stake in RUSAL, the world's largest aluminium producer ex-China in 2018) which is the major consumer of En+ Group's hydroelectricity.

SOURCE En+ Group