Brighter Days Ahead?

Despite reduced attendance, the mood was upbeat at BIR World Recycling Convention.

Acknowledging that when the BIR met in the fall of 2008, the recycling industry and the general economy had just begun a collapse that was still reverberating throughout the industry, Dominique Maguin, BIR president, noted that the industry would be a leader of the economic upswing. In his opening remarks at the convention, held May 25-27 in Dubai, United Arib Emirates, Maguin asked attendees to "assess our ability to react, organize and develop, and to reinforce our professionalism by enhancing the quality of our products, our respect for the environment and the training of employees."

The BIR will focus much of its attention throughout the next few years in working with the European Union toward setting an "end-of-waste" criteria. The association, along with Euro-
metrec and the European Recovered Paper Association (ERPA), two of BIR’s affiliated associations, has been asked to provide input on the deliberations the European Union is discussing.

Speakers at BIR’s Stainless Steel & Special Alloys Committee meeeting noted potential shortages of scrap could arise if there was a pickup in demand. In his remarks, Committee Chairman Michael Wright, chief operating officer of ELG Haniel GmbH, noted that, while stainless steel scrap availability remained low, a significant increase in demand could bring a supply/demand imbalance. Although upbeat about the future, most of the speakers during this session noted that supply and demand had fallen sharply during the past several quarters.

While many consumers around the world have eased back on their purchases, Chinese consumers have come back in the market, soaking up a significant volume of nonferrous metals. Despite this pickup in buying, Alter Trading’s Bob Stein, the chairman of BIR’s Nonferrous Committee, said the scrap metal industry was "marred by the most serious damage to its infrastructure ever" as a result of the "unacceptable behavior" and "wholly unethical activities" of some commercial operators in Asia and elsewhere late last year.

Even with an improved environment, Stein stressed that the contract defaults could not be overlooked. With this in mind, he added that the BIR’s Nonferrous Division board approved two resolutions relating to compliance with and enforcement of the association’s code of conduct.

The discussion and debate over contract defaults also carried over into the ferrous committee’s session. Interseroh Hansa Recycling GmbH’s Christian Rubach, president of the BIR Ferrous Division, noted that the ferrous scrap industry experienced a "confidence shock" when some major consumers looked to escape from their contractual obligations in response to the global economic crisis.

Reflecting this concern, the International Trade Council was formed during the World Recycling Conference. The goal of the group is to protect the trading interests of its members. The group discussed the issue of credit insurance and arbitration in the case of a contract default.

Speakers on the state of the paper recycling industry noted that while many parts of North America and Europe were running at a fairly slow pace, Chinese and Indian buying had helped to fill the gap in demand.

The BIR Autumn Round-Table Sessions will be Oct. 25-27 in Amsterdam, The Netherlands.