Paolo Rocca, CEO at Techint, a holding company that owns several steelmaking companies, including Tenaris, Ternium and Tenova, said on Thursday there are opportunities for the Latin America steel industry to transform the entire value chain.
“What is happening right now (post-Covid-19) is that we have an important opportunity to transform the value chain,” he said during the second day of the Alacero 2021 Conference.
Rocca said the post-Covid-19 world in Latin America has made the region’s fragilities evident, however, trends such as the energy transition are moving fast.
“The energy transition (a transition to cleaner energy sources) is going very fast. There is a confrontation with reality, but (the energy transition) has entered in the definition of the value chain. The steel chain is fundamental for all infrastructure’s value chain. It’s a value chain that can transform our societies,” he said during a panel discussion.
Rocca said that the local steel industry has the opportunity to participate as key players in the definition of the supply chain. “And this is something we should work with a lot of strength,” he said.
Rocca said discussions about who is going to pay for cleaner steel products are just beginning. He said governments, steelmakers, consumers, and industry segments are still figuring out how costs for such products, which tend to be higher due to enhanced technology, should be compensated.
He said automakers, for example, automakers could build “greener” cars if they knew consumers would pay more for environment-friendly automobiles, and, as a result, automakers would eventually pay more for cleaner steel products.