Globe and FerroAtlantica’s planned merger has led to questioning over whether anti-dumping duties on silicon metal from China will stay in place, on concerns that the new company will have a monopoly on the silicon market.

 

Globe, based in the US, has said that the merged company will hold a 12-13% market share in terms of global silicon metal production, which stands at around 2,300,000 tpy. However, as many countries impose anti-dumping duties on silicon from China, the merger between Globe and Spain’s FerroAtlantica has led to concerns being raised over the size of the new company’s market share. "This needs to be seen in conjunction with the anti-dumping duties in Europe and America. This is the biggest issue when considering the merger," a large buyer told Metal Bulletin. Anti-dumping duties have been introduced in the USA, Europe, Canada and, most recently, Australia. This means that China – where 1,300,000 tpy, over half of the world’s silicon metal, is produced – is effectively shut out of much of the global market. To make matters more complicated, the US also has anti-dumping duties in place on material.