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Hilo de la industria europea relocalizándose en EEUU

---carrancas · 2024-01-09T15:32:46+00:00

Pues sí hamijos, como consecuencia de las subvenciones masivas previstas en la ley de reducción de la inflación y también debido a los altos costes de energía, la industria europea (lo que queda de ella tras décadas de globalización y políticas absurdas) se está yendo al otro lado del charco. Con ello EEUU está matando varios pájaros de un tiro: reduce su déficit comercial con Europa, reduce a ésta a la insignificancia económica, aumentan los puestos de trabajo en su propio país, además con mano de obra cualificada y bien pagada, y por último y quizá más importante, aumenta su grado de independencia y suficiencia comercial y tecnológica. Parece que vienen tiempos muy movidos, y los EEUU van a convertir a su continente-isla en un fortín autosuficiente. Aparte de cebar la guerra Ucrania -Rusia, EEUU ha señalado a China como amenaza directa a la seguridad, según las conclusiones de la última cumbre de la OTAN, lo cual aumenta la necesidad de los americanos de reindustrializarse y ser autosuficiente. En fin, esto son nuestros aliados y estas son las élites europea que nos gobiernam. Este hilo es para ir poniendo casos concretos de industrias europeas que se mudan a EEUU por las razones expuestas más arriba. Empiezo por este artículo del Wall Street Journal, es de Septiembre de este año, pero ya menciona varias empresas que se mueven al otro lado del charco: https://www.wsj.com/articles/high-natural-gas-prices-push-european-manufacturers-to-shift-to-the-u-s-11663707594 While the U.S. economy is facing record inflation, supply-chain bottlenecks and antiestéticars of a slowdown, analysts say, it has emerged relatively strong from the pandemic as China continues to enforce el bichito lockdowns and Europe is destabilized by war. New spending by Washington on infrastructure, microchips and green-energy projects has heightened the U.S.’s business appeal. NEWSLETTER SIGN-UP The 10-Point. A personal, guided tour to the best scoops and stories every day in The Wall Street Journal. PREVIEW SUBSCRIBE Danish jewelry company Pandora A/S and German auto maker Volkswagen AG announced U.S. expansions earlier this year. Last week, The Wall Street Journal reported Tesla Inc. is pausing its plans to make battery cells in Germany as it looks at qualifying for tax credits under the Inflation Reduction Act signed by President Biden in August. Europe remains a desirable market for advanced manufacturing and boasts a skilled industrial workforce, analysts and investors say. With pent-up demand from the pandemic, many companies that have seen exploding energy prices in recent months have passed them on to customers. The question is how long the higher natural-gas prices will last. Some economists have warned that natural-gas producers from Canada to the U.S. and Qatar may struggle to fully replace Russia as a supplier for Europe in the medium term. If so, the continent could face high prices, at least for gas, well into 2024, threatening to make the scarring on Europe’s manufacturing sector permanent. German chemical giant BASF, one of Europe’s largest buyers of natural gas, has cut production in Belgian and German plants. PHOTO: RONALD WITTEK/SHUTTERSTOCK “I think we’ll muddle through two winters,” said Stefan Borgas, chief executive of RHI Magnesita NV. If the continent can’t find cheaper gas or ramp up renewable energy, he added, “companies will start to look elsewhere.” The Austrian business, which makes materials used by firms such as steelmakers to withstand intense heat, is spending about 8 million euros, equivalent to about $8 million, on its European plants so certain processes run on alternative fuel such as coal or oil. It is also storing natural gas in a rented underground facility formerly owned by Kremlin-controlled Gazprom and seized by the Austrian government. ‘We are very, very positive on the U.S. ,’ said Stefan Borgas, the chief executive of Austrian manufacturer RHI Magnesita. PHOTO: LEONHARD FOEGER/REUTERS Mr. Borgas is bullish on steel demand in the U.S., where incentives have also brightened the green-energy outlook. Manufacturers like RHI Magnesita see hydrogen as key to replacing fossil fuels and reducing emissions in plants across Europe, the U.S. and elsewhere. Promised spending on such projects by Washington is expected to boost the production of hydrogen and eventually lower its price. “We are increasing our investments [in the U.S.] also in order to stay with all of our partners who are investing,” he said. “We are very, very positive on the U.S.” Luxembourg-based ArcelorMittal SA, which this month said it would cut production at two German plants, reported better-than-expected performance by an investment this year in a Texas facility that makes hot briquetted iron, a raw material for steel production. In a July earnings call, Chief Executive Aditya Mittal attributed the facility’s value in part to being in a “region that offers highly competitive energy and, ultimately, competitive hydrogen.” “I would just add that we also own 100% of future expansion in that facility,” Mr. Mittal said. Nord Stream: How Russia Has Turned Its Gas Into a Global Economic Weapon YOU MAY ALSO LIKE Nord Stream: How Russia Has Turned Its Gas Into a Global Economic WeaponPlay video: Nord Stream: How Russia Has Turned Its Gas Into a Global Economic Weapon Western leaders are preparing for the possibility that Russian natural gas flows through the key Nord Stream pipeline may never return to full levels. WSJ’s Shelby Holliday explains what an energy crisis could look like in Europe, and how it might ripple through the world. Illustration: David Fang Many companies remain cautious about changing their strategies because of the difficulty of building projects such as aluminum smelters, which can cost billions and take years to complete. “It remains to be seen whether this will be a structural change or one of a temporary nature,” said a spokeswoman for German chemical giant BASF, one of Europe’s largest buyers of natural gas, which has cut production in Belgian and German plants. OCI, which has slashed its European ammonia output, has instead ramped up imports to its facility at the Dutch port of Rotterdam. To facilitate such shipments, OCI is expanding its Beaumont, Texas, plant with an investment valued in the “high hundreds of millions” of dollars, said Mr. El-Hoshy, the chief executive. SHARE YOUR THOUGHTS Do you think the U.S. or Europe will be more appealing to manufacturers in coming years? Join the conversation below. At the new facility, OCI will make ammonia derived from so-called blue hydrogen, which relies on natural gas, and then capture carbon dioxide given off by the process. Mr. El-Hoshy said the Inflation Reduction Act made the deal more appealing by offering credits for storing such emissions. “That, coupled with what’s happening with Russia, are two reasons to say, well, maybe over time you don’t need to consume natural gas [in Europe] and produce the product,” he said. European manufacturers may struggle to stay competitive without the lower energy prices or green incentives currently offered in the U.S., said Svein Tore Holsether, chief executive of Norwegian fertilizer giant Yara International AS A. “Some industries, as a result of that, will permanently relocate,” he said.