Overview
- India formally applied to the European Union on Monday to retain access to recyclable metal scrap under the bloc’s revised Waste Shipment Regulation and to seek exemptions or negotiated quotas.
- The EU rule will bar exports of non-hazardous waste to non-OECD countries from May 2027 unless importing countries are authorised by November 2026, and the Commission is also weighing separate aluminium-specific limits to be announced later this year.
- Indian industry and officials warn that tighter EU exports would tighten supplies and raise costs, noting India imported about 366,000 tonnes of aluminium scrap from the EU in 2025 and was the bloc’s largest buyer in early 2026.
- Government sources say a likely compromise could be export quotas rather than a full ban, a move intended to protect supplies while the EU enforces higher environmental oversight of shipments.
- The dispute pits the EU’s circular-economy and environmental goals against India’s industrial needs and could intensify global competition for high-grade scrap, raise domestic prices for manufacturers, and complicate implementation of the new India–EU trade pact.