Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Contents
Preface
Introduction
Strategy programme
13
Business environment
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19
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Preface
The Governments position on how to meet international competition is clear. Sweden will compete on the strength of its knowledge, innovation and renewal. We will not compete on the basis
of low wages and poorer working conditions. We will continue to occupy a high position in the
value chain and develop by focusing on high-tech solutions and international markets.
The role of the state is to create conditions that will enable Sweden to have the best research
and education in the world, a stable economy, a rst-rate business climate and an efcient innovation system. If Sweden is to maintain its successful record in the increasingly tough international
competition prevailing in the global mellurgical industry, it is utterly crucial to develop conditions that are conducive to innovation, production and enterprise.
In June 2004 the Government presented its innovation strategy Innovative Sweden: A strategy for
growth through renewal (Ds 2004:36). The strategy establishes a platform for strengthening Sweden
as a knowledge nation. The vision is clear. Sweden is to be Europes most competitive, dynamic and
knowledge-based economy and Swedish metallurgy is to be the most competitive in Europe.
In the 2004 Statement of Government Policy, the Prime Minister invited business representatives to a series of discussions in a number of industrial sectors, and work subsequently began on
drawing up strategy programmes for these sectors. Effective dialogue between the state and the
business sector is the foundation on which a modern industrial policy must build. This strategy
programme for Swedish metallurgy is a further step in the series of programmes that began with
the strategies for the aerospace and automotive industries and it will be followed by programmes
for the IT/telecom, forestry/wood and pharmaceuticals/biotech industries.
The Swedish metallurgical industry is one of the countrys primary industries. By providing
raw materials, technology and environmental expertise, metallurgy plays a major role in generating employment and sustainable growth in all parts of Swedish trade and industry. By means
of cooperation between the state and the business sector, government agencies and non-governmental organisations, we can improve the competitiveness of the metallurgical industry and
promote Swedish welfare and prosperity.
We are therefore proud to present the strategy programme Metallurgy: a part of Innovative Sweden.
Thomas stros
Minister for Industry
and Trade
Introduction
The industries included in the strategic programme for metallurgy are the iron and steel industry, mines and smelting
plants, the equipment industry and the industrial minerals,
aggregates and dimensional stone (natural stone) industries.
These industries are among Swedens primary industries.
Their common denominator is that they all involve exploration and extraction of natural resources, which can be processed so as to contribute to value-added and high-tech products for use in Sweden or export all over the world.
Our primary industries are the backbone of Swedish industry and Sweden has leading positions to build on. Taken
together, the iron and steel industry, mining and smelting,
and further renement and processing in the engineering industry play a very important role in our industrial system,
our economic growth and our net export position. We are
increasingly dependent on exports and our interaction with
the world around us is becoming even more important.
Companies in these industries are spread throughout Sweden and regional growth aspects must be heeded. In county-level work on regional growth programmes, 14 counties
The industries in the metallurgy sector have differing operating conditions and cooperate with numerous education providers, universities and colleges, and other research performers.
Several different clusters exist, with varying degrees of cooperation, particularly in steel, mining and rock material areas.
The Swedish companies in these areas operate on an international market. As competition grows tougher, it is therefore vital to the continued development of trade and indus-
It is also important for Sweden to utilise the results of basic and applied research conducted in other countries and to
take part actively in international R&D cooperation in the
EU and elsewhere. Collaboration between Finland and Sweden on research and development is an interesting option for
both countries. World-class research and innovation environments are essential to make Sweden attractive to new and
existing knowledge-intensive companies.
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Export actions
Action is needed to maintain, develop and support the ability
of Swedish companies to succeed internationally and to seize
the opportunities that globalisation offers to maintain a high
level of exports in the industries concerned. This applies in
particular to new product development where the Swedish
market is not large enough to bear the development costs.
Competition is steadily increasing in most industries as the
number of global actors continues to grow. If Swedish companies are to develop a strong position, they must succeed in
increasing their market shares. In such cases, intra-industry
cooperation in the form of partnership among a group of
companies can augment their combined strength and open
up new possibilities. There is great potential in companies
that supply advanced services and products growing up close
to established companies. Another example is environmental
technology, the market for which is growing rapidly. Making
use of such opportunities for international business in the
industries concerned may play an important part in efforts
to sustain strong competitiveness.
Many international companies work with the concept of
Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR), which essentially
means that in some areas these companies take measures
on their own initiative that go beyond the requirements of
laws and regulations. The point of these measures is to enhance quality in areas such as the external environment, the
work environment or relations with landowners and nearby
residents. Such measures can help make the companies more
competitive and contribute to sustainable social development
in Sweden and internationally. International standardisation
is in progress in this area. In March 2002, the Government
launched the Swedish Partnership for Global Responsibility, an initiative aimed at encouraging industry to work for
global development through increased social and environmental responsibility. The initiative is based on the OECD
Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises and the principles
of the UN Global Compact.
Improved processes make it possible to increase the re-
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12
Strategy programme
The three strategies for research and development, skills provision and sustainable development make up the foundation of
the strategy programme. The programme also contains proposals for a number of measures that will help realise the vision.
In many cases, the proposed measures are highly interdependent. This should be borne in mind when implementing
them. The actors responsible for moving the process forward
are specied after each proposal.
8 Geoscientic research
The Geological Survey of Sweden guided by the wishes of
the industry and in consultation with other relevant agencies should be instructed to analyse the possibility of supplementing its geoscientic research responsibilities with an
increased focus on research relevant to ore geology, and to
examine the possibility of industry input in setting project
priorities.
8 Energy research
Under the long-term energy policy programme, actions are
being taken on research, development and demonstration in
a number of different areas. One of these areas concerns energy use and energy efciency in mining and manufacturing.
The focus is on energy-intensive industries. Work is now in
progress on drawing up strategies, visions and criteria for prioritising energy-intensive industries in the metallurgy area,
among others.
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8 Supply of capital
To strengthen the potential for commercialisation of research results and innovations in trade and industry, the
Government has set aside funds to secure access to skills
and capital at early stages of development. The most important feature of this initiative is the formation of Innovationsbron AB, a national umbrella group that brings together in a single organisation several of the public providers of
early development capital. To further strengthen early stage
nancing, Industrifonden Foundation will collaborate with
Innovationsbron by providing funds to supplement capital
available on the market.
Nutek and some regional actors will also undertake regional venture capital actions with the support of EU structural
funds. These regional venture capital actions are to cooperate closely with private regional venture capital companies
and investments are to be on market terms. These tools for
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The industry
The industry
for mining and metals. The link between Swedish and Finnish mining and metals industries has grown palpably stronger
over the past ten years. Maintaining and further developing
competitiveness and growth is contingent on research and
development of the highest international standard. There is
potential for increased collaboration between the two countries in applied research and in the educational area. These
issues are being addressed within the framework of the highlevel dialogue between Sweden and Finland that was initiated by the two countries prime ministers earlier this year.
The industry
8 Voluntary commitments/CSR
The industry should publish examples of its work on voluntary
measures to develop and improve attitudes and impacts relating to the external environment, the work environment or, for
example, relations with landowners and nearby residents.
The industry
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Business environment
Strong global demand for steel in recent years has led to
rapid production growth. Over the past ten years, production has increased on average by 3.8 per cent per year. In
2004, world production of crude steel reached and passed
the magic boundary of 1 billion tonnes.
The increased demand is mainly explained by Chinas rapid
economic growth. Demand has risen substantially in other
parts of Asia as well. Chinas production of steel has also
grown sharply in just a short time. In 2004 China accounted
for 25.8 per cent of the worlds crude steel production. This
represents almost a tripling of output since 1995. In 2004
the output of crude steel in China increased so vigorously
that the growth alone exceeded Germanys total annual
production of crude steel. Germany is the largest producer
in Europe.
The international steel industry is now undergoing a
process of restructuring similar to that which the Swedish
steel industry has already been through. A number of major
steel groups are emerging, with production in many different
parts of the world. Two examples are Mittal Steel, with
operations worldwide, and the European company Arcelor,
with plants in ve EU countries and Brazil.
The rising demand for steel has created a new situation for
all actors in the market, with higher volumes and prices for
raw materials such as coal, iron ore, scrap and alloying materials. Freight costs have also shot up. This is a disadvantage for
the Swedish steel industry, which has to move its products
longer distances to reach customers than its competitors.
High price levels lead to increased exploration for new deposits while also reinforcing the motivation to recycle. An
estimated 35 billion tonnes of ore and rock are handled each
year in all industries, including metals, industrial minerals,
coal, gravel and stone. Approximately 10 per cent of this is
from underground mines. Gold, copper and iron ore are the
leading metals in terms of value. It is important for the global mining industry that sufcient resources can be allocated
to exploration for new deposits and developing new metallurgical methods and important, not least, that the industry
succeeds in managing long-term environmental problems.
The main competitors of the Swedish mining industry are in
Australia, South Africa, South America and Canada.
Advanced industrial minerals are found and produced
by companies in many countries, with developed countries
clearly dominant. In recent years there has been restructuring in the industry, with increased specialisation and concentration of ownership in certain product areas. This process
has been driven by the need to improve prots. Suppliers of
mineral products face increasing demands to deliver technical services to the customer in order to establish long-term
cooperation. The market for highly processed products such
as llers and pigments is expanding.
Aggregates are produced and used in every country in the
world. Production is local, due to the great availability of raw
materials. At a rough estimate, world production is 14 billion
tonnes per year. In Europe, the use of crushed rock as aggregate is becoming increasingly widespread. It is suitable rock
in coastal areas that is often exported. There is a clear trend
towards larger producing companies, since quarries require
major investments. In many countries gravel is in short supply and alternative materials are therefore increasingly used,
mainly crushed rock but also recycled building materials.
Dimensional stone can be produced and transported for
use all over the world because types of stone that are in demand command relatively high prices and cost relatively little to freight. Global production has increased very sharply
over the past 20 years and is now estimated at approximately
40 million tonnes per year, the largest producers being Italy,
China, Spain and India.
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SEK/ton
Sweden
8 400
7 951
Finland
Slovenia
Switzerland
6 026
USA
Italy
5 762
11
Germany
5 064
20
Japan
4 048
7 002
Table 1
Average of all
products: non
alloy, stainless
and other alloy
Source: Iron and Steel
Statistics Bureau
5 472
In both the mining and the steel industries, larger and larger
volumes are being produced by fewer and fewer employees.
This has been achieved by automation and the development
of a high level of technology in IT and other areas.
Sweden has the potential to develop its production of
industrial minerals for export to other EU countries. This
applies primarily to types of minerals that are not available
elsewhere in the EU or for which supplies are beginning to
run low. Examples include high-quality aggregates, dimensional stone, feldspars and dolomites of good quality, as well
as graphite, wollastonite and kaolin. Swedish producers have
done well in terms of technical development and market
requirements. This may be one of the reasons why international producers have shown increased interest in including
Swedish entities in their groups.
Developing the aggretates industry for a growing export
market requires the establishment of quarries in coastal areas
with access to ports.
The dimensional stone industry extracts a number of
unique types of stone that are appreciated internationally
and have a high market value. It is considered that the way
for Swedish companies to hold their own in a competitive
market is to continue to produce the grades of highly col-
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20
Kirunavaara
Malmberget
Aitik
Mines in
Sweden
2005
Laisvall
Vargbcken Storliden
Maurliden
Blaiken
Norrliden
Svrttrsk
kerberg
Barsele
Bjrkdal
Svartliden Kristineberg Renstrm
Petikns
Fboliden
Iron ore
Sulphide ore
Gold ore
Industrial minerals
Garpenberg
Garpenberg Norra
In production
Lovisagruvan
Recently closed
Licence applied for
or approved
Zinkgruvan
Vram
Lunnom
Billinge
0
50
100
150
200
250 km
Source:BERGSSTATEN
Mining Inspectorate
of Sweden
89,20%
1st
Gold
26,90%
Zink
23,80%
Silver
16,90%
Led
30,40%
Copper
11,40%
Other characteristic features of the industry are its branches around the world and close contact with the products
end users. Several of the companies are wholly or partly foreign-owned. Production is essentially concentrated in midSweden, smaller sites in Bergslagen and Lule.
Number of employees: Approximately 20 000.
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Gravel quarries
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Dimensional stone has been used for building from time immemorial. The durability of stone and its minimal maintenance requirements bear testimony to its unique qualities in
ecocycle terms. This is leading to increased use.
Production: 1 million tonnes of quarried material. There are
62 productive quarries.
Number of employees: Approximately 1 100.
Total value of production: Dimensional stone products have
a sales value of approximately SEK 1 billion.
Exports and imports: 25 per cent is destined for export. The
value of imports comes to SEK 250 million. China is a major
trading partner, both for exports and imports.
Producers: There are just over
200 companies in the industry.
Only 25 of them have more than
10 employees. The four largest
corporate groups are Emmaboda
Granit AB, AP-Sten AB, Bohuslns Kooperativa Stenindustri and
Skifferbolaget AB.
Stone quarries
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Strategy group
and secretariat
The following people have participated in the strategy group
Sven-Eric Sder
Elisabeth Nilsson
Tomas From
Per Murn
NCC Roads AB
Ola Asplund
Nils-ke Carlsson
Mats hrn
Lars Ljung
Per Eriksson
Ulf Holmgren
Bjrn Nsvall
Anders Wenstrm
Stina Gerdes
Bo Diczfalusy
Olle Bjrk
Nicklas Liss-Larsson
Olof Sandberg
Bengt Toresson
Ann-Christin Cederlund
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Mathias Ternell
Tomas From
Gran Bckblom
Marianne Thomaeus
Riitta Lindstrm
Josene Larsson
Emma berg
Sif
Lars Garneflt
Anders Marn
Bjrn Nsvall
Sven Arvidsson
Peter Hellsten
Gran Hamne
Sara Kilander
Stina Gerdes
Mats Johnsson
Nicklas Liss-Larsson
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www.sweden.gov.se