Aluminum: Italy’s industry focuses on sustainability and young talent skills to meet European challenges

Sustainability at the core of the aluminum sector in Italy: companies declaring themselves sustainable grew by 8 percent over the last four months, while ESG criteria are increasingly being integrated into corporate governance strategies;

Training also gains new importance by looking to young people for the development of new skills: One out of three companies already collaborates with ITS and universities for the placement of new talent; another third of them are in the process of activating these partnerships;

• Energy challenges and international competition have impacted the industry throughout Europe, with consequences in Italy as well. To explore this topic as well, METEF returns March 5–7, 2025 at BolognaFiere in conjunction with MECSPE to join the synergies of the industry and identify strategies to make the industry more competitive and efficient.

Milano, Dec. 19, 2024 – The aluminum sector is focusing on sustainability and new skills for young people to meet the challenges facing the entire supply chain, both nationally and in Europe. According to the Osservatorio MECSPE (MECSPE Observatory) covering the second quarter of 2024, entrepreneurs in the aluminum industry are paying more attention to sustainability: more than four out of 10 of them[1] rate their companies as very or fairly sustainable, an 8 percent increase over the previous quarter. This focus is also reflected in corporate governance, where ESG criteria take on a strategic role, in which companies are showing interest: 33 percent of companies say they have already implemented or are in the process of implementing ESG criteria, while 25 percent say they have every intention of doing so soon.

In terms of skills, companies are increasingly looking to already trained young talent to bring in new trained staff; in fact, about one out of three companies are already collaborating with universities and ITSs, while another third of respondents say they plan to activate collaborations soon to provide job opportunities for young people within the next year. The most sought-after figures are skilled laborers (53%) and skilled technicians (47%). While about one-quarter of entrepreneurs look to universities, ITSs and IFTSs to introduce new skills into their companies, more than half invest in training courses to upgrade the skills of existing staff.

Along these two lines, companies in the industry will meet at METEF, the international benchmark exhibition for the aluminum supply chain organized by Senaf, at BolognaFiere March 5–7, 2025. In a global context where sustainability plays an increasingly crucial role and new skills are needed to implement cutting-edge technological solutions, METEF 2025 is preparing to welcome companies from across the supply chain, offering a unique opportunity to address the structural and competitive challenges the aluminum industry is facing.

In addition, thanks to the close cooperation with ICE, Agency for the promotion abroad and internationalization of Italian companies, METEF exhibitors will have the opportunity to meet buyer delegations from European and non-European countries during the days of the event through a program of matching and one-to-one business meetings.

At the recent webinar organized by METEF as a leg of the roadshow in the run-up to the fair, entitled “Aluminum between sustainability and critical raw material,” the protagonists—Roberta Maroni of Hydro, Roberta Niboli of Raffmetal, and Francesca di Bernardo of the European Aluminium Association—highlighted that aluminum, a strategic raw material for Europe, is at the center of important challenges: since 2021, European primary production has been reduced by 52 percent due to energy costs that have risen by up to 400 percent, reducing production capacity from 2 to 1 million tons per year. In addition, scrap exports increased by 18 percent in 2023, depriving the continent of a crucial resource for recycling, which consumes only 5 percent of the energy required by primary production.

During the webinar, the need for stronger industrial policies that limit the export of strategic resources such as scrap and incentivize the use of renewable energy were highlighted. In this context, greater involvement of institutions is essential, not only to support technology investments, but also to raise awareness of sustainability among the younger generation. Recycling training and education are seen as indispensable levers for building a stronger, more resilient and future-oriented aluminum supply chain.

The next edition of METEF will be held March 5–7, 2025, in conjunction with MECSPE.

About METEF

For 25 years, the METEF exhibition has been Italy’s only point of reference for the aluminum industrial supply chain: from raw, primary, and recycled materials, to machinery, equipment, production and processing plants, semi-finished products, castings and finished products in the diecasting, gravity and low-pressure foundry, extrusion, rolling and stamping sectors, to machining, assemblies, finishes and recycling technologies.

METEF is an event created and shaped in close collaboration with businesses and industry insiders. Today, in a global context of heated and difficult competitiveness, it is revived by focusing on the established expertise and experience of the industry segment.

As is customary, the industry’s top national and international associations’ unwavering support helps refocus attention on the industry’s development through an extraordinary cultural heritage that must tackle the new frontiers of technology and sustainable innovation.

METEF, for which Senaf has been appointed as the organizer, will be held concurrently with MECSPE, a landmark event for the manufacturing industry in Italy. The two events will be located in separate pavilions but adjacent to develop synergies and achieve common goals. A strong alliance between two events that are well known and established in their respective target markets, as well as complementarity and completeness of the product range offered, aim to offer visitors a complete and unmissable experience.

For further information visit www.mecspe.com/en

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