The European Union on Monday scrapped an 11.5 percent electrical-steel tariff against Novolipetsk Steel, increasing competition for EU producers, such as Germany's ThyssenKrupp.

The EU removed the duty because Novolipetsk, also known as NLMK, in 2006 acquired fellow Russian producer VIZ Stal, which faced no similar levy. The duty aimed to prevent NLMK from selling silicon-electrical steel, used by power-transformer makers such as France's Areva, in the EU below cost — a practice known as dumping.

The merged entity's structure and prices no longer justify the trade protection, said the EU, which imposed the duty in August 2005 for five years. Novolipetsk and VIZ Stal were Russia's only known exporters to the EU of the metal, whose full name is grain oriented flat-rolled products of silicon- electrical steel, or GOES.

"The anti-dumping measures concerning imports of GOES from Russia should be repealed," the EU said.

20 May 2008

Bloomberg

Source: www.themoscowtimes.com

Keywords: EU Scraps Tariff On NLMK Steel, antidumping, anti-dumping, EU, NLMK Steel, dumping, power-transformer makers, silicon- electrical steel, grain oriented flat-rolled products, anti-dumping measures