London, May 13th (Argus) - Outokumpu, a stainless steel producer based in Finland, stated that since the implementation of the Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) in the EU at the beginning of the year, its shipment volume in the first quarter of this year has increased compared to the previous quarter.
The stainless steel delivery volume from January to March rose to 465,000 tons, up 27% year-on-year, but down 1% year-on-year.
The implementation of the CBAM imposes carbon costs on imports from outside the EU, thereby driving demand to shift towards low-carbon production in Europe using scrap steel as the raw material. The company expects that the stainless steel delivery volume in the second quarter will increase by up to 10% compared to the first quarter.
The stainless steel shipment volume in the European market in the first quarter was 324,000 tons, up 2% year-on-year; the shipment volume in the Americas was 148,000 tons, down 5% year-on-year.
The shipment volume of chromium iron alloy in the first quarter increased by 15.8% year-on-year to 110,000 tons, mainly supported by strong demand in Europe and the United States.
Outokumpu's adjusted EBITDA in the first quarter increased by 33% to 65 million euros (approximately 76.1 million US dollars), mainly due to the increase in average selling prices in the Americas. However, the profitability of the European chromium iron alloy business declined, partially offsetting this growth.
