Brussels – The economic repercussions of the war in Iran – triggered by the Israeli-US attack on Tehran on 28 February – are spreading from sector to sector. This time, it is the Italian plastics industry that is under the microscope: according to a study published by ECCO, the Italian think tank specialising in energy and climate change, the war in the Middle East and the resulting closure of the strategic Strait of Hormuz have triggered a significant rise in the price of plastic products. And Italy – due to its high dependence on non-European exporters of these materials – is among those paying the highest prices, with some industrial operators reportedly already signaling price rises of up to 30 percent.
The link between the Middle East crisis and rising prices in the plastics sector is clear. According to the report’s figures, around 80 percent of European plastic production derives from fossil fuels, particularly oil and gas: to put this into perspective, between 1.4 and 2.2 tonnes of crude oil are required to produce every tonne of plastic. The exponential rise in the price of the “black gold” following the closure of the Strait of Hormuz (through which around a fifth of the world’s oil passes) has therefore triggered a chain reaction that has led to a surge in plastic production costs and – above all – the consumer price of end products made from this polymer.
Italy – as the world’s sixth-largest importer of plastics and plastic products, with imports worth approximately 22 billion euros in 2024 – is among the countries most exposed to this trend. Around 80 percent of the oil that usually passes through the Strait of Hormuz is destined for Asian markets, particularly China, which is the final destination for 90 percent of Iranian crude oil. And the majority of plastic bottles and containers used by Italian companies in the packaging sector are sourced precisely from China. In terms of economic value, according to ECCO, Chinese plastic exports to Italy reached 96 million euros in 2024.
Given these figures, it is hardly surprising that the packaging sector has been hardest hit by the surge in plastic prices. After all, Italy uses plastic on a particularly massive scale compared to most other EU countries: according to Eurostat data, Italy ranked seventh, producing almost 39 kg of plastic packaging waste per capita in 2023, compared to an EU average of 35 kg.
The ECCO report also examines another issue that underscores the extent to which Italy is paying the price for its dependence on plastic: the burden of the so-called European “plastic tax.” This measure – introduced by an EU Council Decision in December 2020 – stipulates a tax of 0.80 euros per kilogram of non-recycled waste and primarily affects countries lagging behind in the transition away from single-use plastics. In 2024 alone, for example, Italy failed to recycle 1.2 megatonnes of plastic packaging, which is expected to cost around 751 million euros, entirely borne by public coffers. As ECCO points out, the Conte II government had attempted to make this burden more sustainable by introducing a national plastic tax in the 2020 budget law. A measure that has remained unimplemented to this day. “A possible solution to this national vulnerability would be the implementation of the national plastic tax, a levy of 0.45 euros per kilogram of plastic contained in single-use items. Italy had introduced this measure with the 2020 Budget Law, but the measure continues to be postponed,” according to the report.
“In an increasingly unstable international context,” concludes ECCO in the appeal accompanying the report, “reducing plastic consumption and boosting recycling and the production of bio-based plastics is not only an environmental priority, but also a strategic lever for containing costs, increasing the resilience of the production system, and strengthening the country’s economic security”.
English version by the Translation Service of Withub
