Day: 7 May 2026

Austria-based steel producer Wuppermann Metalltechnik GmbH (WMT), a subsidiary of Germany-based Wuppermann Group, has announced that it has officially opened its new tube plant at its Altmünster site in Austria.

The new facility will expand WMT’s production capacity and significantly broaden its product range. It will produce complex special profiles with wall thicknesses of up to 4 mm, as well as tubes and profiles in an extended range of dimensions and strengths. The plant will process steel grades such as DP800, DP980 and 22MnB5, with tensile strengths of up to 1,000 MPa.

According to the company, the new plant is equipped with fully automated raw material and finished goods warehouses, together with highly digitalized logistics and production processes, ensuring high efficiency. WMT stated that the facility also includes an inline rolling stand and a tube internal scraping unit, enabling the production of premium products with tight tolerances. The company’s existing tube welding line will remain in operation and will be relocated to the new hall complex to increase efficiency.

“This significant investment by Wuppermann Group has resulted in the creation of one of the most modern tube mills in the world. It enables us to remain the quality leader for our customers, manufacture with maximum efficiency, benefit from a very high level of digitalization and automation, and safeguard European production,” Oliver Rechtsprecher, spokesman for the executive board of Wuppermann AG, stated.

Czech energy and investment group Sev.en Global Investments has signaled interest in a possible combined bid for British Steel and Speciality Steel UK, arguing that a single buyer could create a stronger, more stable future for the UK steel industry, according to a report by The Guardian. The proposal, if pursued, could reshape the country’s steel sector by creating the UK’s largest steelmaker.

Sev.en suggests combined solution for British Steel and SSUK

Sev.en Global Investments has said the UK government should look for one buyer for both British Steel and Speciality Steel UK. The group stated that such a combination could create the country’s biggest steel producer and provide a more robust industrial solution.

The company already owns the UK’s largest electric steelworks and said it plans to invest £100 million in the UK, mainly in the electric arc steelworks in Cardiff, which it acquired last year. Sev.en also stated that it has the capacity to invest hundreds of millions of pounds more in Britain through its 7 Steel brand.

Sev.en says UK needs a buyer with steelmaking expertise

Speaking to The Guardian, Sev.en CEO Alan Svoboda said the UK government should seek a large company with proven steel production experience to take on British Steel’s plant in Scunthorpe, Lincolnshire, and SSUK’s electric arc furnace operations in South Yorkshire.

Although Svoboda said he could not discuss specific talks with the government or other parties, he suggested that a combined approach could be more attractive if it reduced the need for taxpayer support.

French recycling firm Derichebourg has signed an agreement to acquire 100% of the share capital of Germany’s Scholz Recycling Group, Kallanish notes.

This strategic acquisition continues Derichebourg’s international growth and strategy to secure its leading position in the global metal waste recycling industry, it says.

According to the French company, this will also expand operational scale by integrating a network of over 100 recycling centres – 180 including joint ventures – located in countries where the group has little or no business.

The acquisition will also “support the decarbonisation of the steel industry in Europe to meet the growing demand from European steelmakers who are replacing their traditional blast furnaces with electric arc furnaces which consume large quantities of high-quality scrap metal,” it adds. It will “optimise operational efficiency through complementary logistical and commercial operations across Europe.”

The transaction is expected to close in the second half of 2026. It would be financed entirely from Derichebourg’s existing cash resources and credit facilities, with the bridge loan provided by BNP Paribas.

“This project would mark a pivotal step in our international expansion strategy,” says Derichebourg chief executive Abderaman El Aoufir. “We have been able to nimbly seize a complex market opportunity thanks to the strength of our balance sheet and our industrial vision.”

Derichebourg Group is a major international operator in waste recycling, mainly metal and public sector services. The group currently operates in 13 countries and has 5,393 employees worldwide. In 2025, Derichebourg generated revenue of €3.3 billion ($3.85 billion).

Founded in 1872, Scholz is one of Europe’s leading metal recycling companies. With a turnover of €1.6 billion in 2025, the group has a long-standing industrial presence in Germany, as well as in the Czech Republic, Poland, Slovenia, and through joint ventures in Austria and Romania. In 2025, Scholz sold over 3 million tonnes of recycled ferrous metals, non-ferrous metals, paper, cardboard and plastics.

The European Commission, under the EU Merger Regulation, has approved the acquisition of German mill Hüttenwerke Krupp Mannesmann (HKM) in Duisburg by Salzgitter Mannesmann.

The transaction relates primarily to the manufacture of semi-finished carbon steel products, the Commission writes.

In February, Germany’s largest steelmakers, Salzgitter AG and thyssenkrupp Steel agreed on a transfer of tk Steel’s 50% stake in HKM to Salzgitter AG’s subdivision Salzgitter Mannesmann, effective 1 June (see Kallanish 6 February).

Salzgitter so far holds 30% in HKM. The remaining 20% was held by French tubemaker Vallourec, which had closed its German mills in recent years. The agreement sees it selling its stake to Salzgitter.

HKM is one of the biggest German slab mills with a potential capacity of around 5 million tonnes/year of slab, but no rolling facilities. For tk Steel’s parent thyssenkrupp, the ownership in HKM had become a hurdle in the group’s endeavour to make its steel division a separate independent company.

Meanwhile, HKM slabs are feedstock for Salzgitter Mannesmann’s tubes production.

The European Commission concluded that the notified transaction would not raise competition concerns, given the limited impact on the market structure. The notified transaction was examined under the simplified merger review procedure, it says.

Tubos Reunidos has informed the CNMV that the Board of Directors has acknowledged that, due to the cash flow pressures experienced by the Company in recent months—further aggravated by the undesired suspension of activity at the Amurrio mill—the Company is in a situation of imminent insolvency.

Under these circumstances, and notwithstanding that the Board of Directors has been working over recent months on a viability plan aimed at ensuring the continuity of the Company and its subsidiaries, given that the necessary conditions to guarantee the Company’s viability at present have not yet been secured (particularly in terms of a significant cash inflow), the Board, maintaining the prudent approach that has guided its actions, has been compelled to file for voluntary insolvency proceedings in accordance with Article 6 and related provisions of Royal Legislative Decree 1/2020 of 5 May, approving the revised text of the Spanish Insolvency Law (“TRLC”).

This filing has been submitted today, 4 May, before the competent court in Álava.

The decision to file for voluntary insolvency proceedings—also adopted by the governing bodies of the Company’s subsidiaries—has been taken following appropriate external advice and with the aim of protecting the interests of creditors, employees, suppliers and shareholders of the Company and its subsidiaries.

Tubos Reunidos is a listed company on the Spanish stock exchange with more than 130 years of history and a global leader in specialised niche segments of seamless steel tubular products. The Group operates three production facilities located in Amurrio and Subillabide (Álava), and Valle de Trápaga (Bizkaia).

Italian distributors saw some levels of order intake in April despite the Easter holiday and broadly sluggish market conditions.

Several mills raised long product prices during the month, while large distributors maintained competitive pricing compared to mills.

One large distributor tells Kallanish the market remains stuck and stagnant, though it has managed to sustain sales through low prices thanks to material purchased at cheaper levels.

Mills raised sections, rebar, mesh and merchant bar values but appear to have sold lower volumes than the distribution segment because of the high prices.

May remains uncertain for now as it started with very little demand. A second distributor says it is normally a busy month, but activity in Western Europe is expected to be particularly slow due to the high number of bank holidays in France and Germany. The source believes elevated long product prices will hold through May.

Some mills have sold strong volumes on the export market and say they are in no rush to sell domestically, intending to maintain high price levels. Two large distributors confirm they have no plans to buy at current prices and hold sufficient stock to cover May.

Italian merchant bar is currently trading at €360-385/tonne ($423.45-452.85/t) delivered, while producers are asking €390/t delivered and considering further increases. Current transactions, including size extras, range between €780-805/t.

Smaller buyers say they have purchased very little from producers last month due to elevated prices. Agents report subdued demand, with all buyers purchasing only for immediate needs. One agent tells Kallanish volumes in the first four months matched last year’s levels, but May has started extremely slowly. Sellers are taking a wait-and-see approach, and no forecasts are possible in current market conditions. Those with sufficient stock, such as distributors able to supply material immediately, are best positioned in this market.

Meanwhile, sections demand remains average, and prices are stable compared to late-April at €820-830/t delivered. Several sources believe current high prices for long products are unsustainable and a trend reversal lies ahead.