Year: 2026

Saarstahl and its wire making unit, DWK Drahtwerk Köln GmbH (DWK), have agreed to significantly increase deliveries of prestressing steels in their strategic partnership with Max Bogl Wind AG.

The wind power engineering division of German construction group Max Bögl is Germany’s market and technology leader in hybrid tower construction for wind turbines, with 4,000 units built so far, according to Saarstahl. DWK has been supplying Max Bögl since 2015, Kallanish notes.

Max Bögl has now secured its long-term supply of prestressing steel wire for the construction of modern hybrid towers. Prestressing steel wire is used to place the individual concrete sections of each tower under compressive stress, which makes wind turbines stable and resilient, Sasrststahl explains.

The upper section of Max Bögl’s hybrid towers is made of steel, while the lower section – which can be up to 120 metres high – is made of environmentally friendly concrete. The strength and quality of the prestressing steel wire are decisive in ensuring the stability of the concrete tower.

Max Bögl manufactures up to 35 individual concrete rings. To achieve the required stability, the company produces tendons and uses these to prestress the concrete tower. This prestressing is the most efficient way to transfer the high loads of the turbines through the concrete tower, Saarstahl says.

 

Slovenia’s Sovereign Holding (SDH), which manages state equity stakes, is supporting efforts to find a new, preferably strategic and financially strong owner for Slovenian Steel Group (SIJ), says SDH chairman Ziga Debeljak.

“Since 2007, when the majority share of the steelmaker was sold, Slovenia has only had a 25% ownership stake [in SIJ], so it has not been able to influence the company’s operations,” he said in an interview with newspaper Delo. “The current challenges of the SIJ Group also stem from objective circumstances on the European market in the steel industry. The current situation is not a result of poor management, but primarily objective market conditions.”

At the same time, ownership is a responsibility and companies, especially those undertaking cyclical activities such as steelmaking, must have financially strong owners who can support the firm in difficult times, Debeljak added.

“The current owner does not seem to be like that, so SSH, within its competence, supports activities to find a new, preferably strategic, financially strong owner for the company, which will enable it to continue developing both at the Jesenice and Koroshka locations,” he noted. “It is positive that the group has invested heavily in technology in recent years and today has modern, competitive technology that also enables the production of green steel. This is also key for its future operations and development.”

If the new owner wants to buy a 100% stake, SDH will sell the state’s shareholding, he notes. “If the state wants to remain a co-owner, we are ready to continue to remain a minority co-owner,” he adds.

In response to these comments, SIJ tells Kallanish: “SIJ Group cannot confirm the statements from SDH.”

SDH did not reply to request for comment before Monday deadline.

The SIJ Group is primarily owned by Dilon, which holds a 72.2% stake. Dilon is a Slovenian company controlled by Russian businessman Andrey Zubitskiy.

Earlier, the Slovenian steelmaker expressed interest in acquiring Montenegro-based Zeljezara Niksic.

SIJ produced 248,100 tonnes of crude steel in the first half of 2025, down by 6% year-on-year, according to latest available data. Revenue was €518 million ($611m), down from €582m in the same period in 2024.

 

Acciaierie d’Italia’s (ADI) is restarting blast furnace No. 2 at its Taranto steelworks, the company confirms to Kallanish.

Additionally, scheduled maintenance of BF No.4 will start on 28 February and last around 60 days. By 28 February the coke plants will also be restarted, with batteries 7, 8 and 12 returning to operation after being shut down for maintenance works on the catalyst.

The special commissioners are expecting BF No. 2 and No. 4 to be fully operational by April with the currently idled coke batteries also restarted. With BF No. 2 and 4 online, the plant will reach a production capacity of 4 million tonnes of steel/year.

“The restart of the plant, which ensures the recovery of a strategic production asset, forms part of the actions and commitments of the special commissioners aimed at guaranteeing operational continuity and safeguarding the industrial and employment perimeter during the current phase,” the company says in a note.

 

Spanish steel association Unesid has called for the European Union’s Industrial Accelerator Act (IAA) to include steel in the mechanisms designed to prioritise the purchase of products manufactured in Europe, Kallanish notes.

In a letter to the EU’s industry and economy ministers, the organisation has expressed serious concern about the latest draft of the act, which does not include steel in the list of materials or services that must be sourced in the EU for public tenders. Unesid warns that investment and industrial jobs will be lost if priority is not given to steel manufactured in Europe.

“If the exclusion is confirmed on 25 February, Europe will send a negative signal to investors at one of the most delicate moments for the steel industry,” Unesid states. “The European steel industry is facing historic investments to decarbonise its production, but it needs a clear signal that strategic demand, infrastructure, defence, automotive and green technologies will support production within the EU.”

For Unesid, losing productive capacity is not just an industrial issue for Europe, but one of economic security and strategic autonomy.

“The Spanish and European steel sector is undergoing the greatest transformation in its history, which will only materialise if there is regulatory certainty and effective demand. That is why the priority given to products manufactured on the continent must be real and limited to steel produced in the European Economic Area,” Unesid concludes.

German steel players also expressed concern last week that the IAA draft suggests low-emission steel could be sourced outside the EU (see Kallanish passim). The IAA is due to be presented by the European Commission on 25 February.

 

Any EU-US trade agreement must result in “balanced market conditions” for industry in both jurisdictions, says Eurofer, with discussions on the EU-US trade agreement due to take place in the European Parliament’s International Trade Committee (INTA) on Tuesday. This comes after data showed EU steel exports to the US plunged 30% on-year in the second half of 2025.

“A 30% drop in steel exports to the US within just six months is a clear signal that the blunt 50% tariffs imposed by the US government on EU steel are damaging our industry. The US decision to include EU downstream steel products, such as machinery, will have another huge negative impact on us and our European customers,” Eurofer director general Axel Eggert says in a note sent to Kallanish.

The EU-US deal must be “fair, reciprocal and enforceable,” Eggert notes. “But so far, we are still waiting to hear whether the arrangement will secure meaningful EU steel access to the US market or a joint response to global steel overcapacity.”

According to the latest available Eurostat data verified by Kallanish, EU steel exports to the US of finished carbon steel – excluding pipe – under HS code headings 7208-7217 fell 37% on-year in July-November 2025 to 503,659 tonnes. Overall exports of chapter 72 iron and steel fell 30% to 1.05 million tonnes.

Eurofer says the steel industry welcomes recent proposals in the European Parliament to introduce review and response mechanisms within the EU-US arrangement to ensure that European industry can respond if tariff levels remain elevated or increase in the future.

While the new steel trade regime should be in place from 1 July, steel intensive downstream products must also be shielded from trade diversion and global overcapacity, it adds. The risk of trade diversion through steel-intensive downstream products has increased significantly over the past decade, Eurofer concludes.

 

European Association of Automotive Suppliers (CLEPA) is calling on the European Commission to take decisive action to support the sector suppliers against mounting unfair competition.

Ahead of the anticipated publication of the Industrial Accelerator Act, CLEPA’s president, Matthias Zink, and vice-presidents, Iñigo Laskurain, Jean-Luc di Paola Galloni, and Marco Stella, have issued an open letter urging President Ursula von der Leyen to act, Kallanish notes.

While welcoming global trade, they warn that distortive subsidies, state-backed overcapacity and unilateral tariffs are placing European automotive suppliers at a structural disadvantage.

“Without intervention, the EU risks trading its technological sovereignty for permanent dependency on regions with lower costs and weaker regulations. A clear and ambitious definition of the ‘European vehicle’ is essential to ensure that the value of the mobility transformation remains anchored in Europe,” it claims.

According to CLEPA, to bolster industrial resilience and sustain high-quality jobs, the Industrial Accelerator Act must include a 75% local content threshold at the vehicle level for public support (excluding batteries), targeted and gradual thresholds for critical technologies such as electric powertrains and electrical & electronic components. “Europe’s automotive suppliers are currently investing heavily in decarbonisation and digitalisation. A clear and ambitious definition of a ‘European vehicle’ is key to ensuring that the mobility transformation and the value and jobs it creates, remains anchored in Europe,” it adds.

The letter also calls for the restoration of a level playing field, with international trade remaining fair.

“The signs are evident in the trade balance sheets of 2025. Imports of automotive components from China have reached €8.2 billion ($9.6 billion). We have witnessed a startling reversal: a comfortable trade surplus of nearly €7 billion just five years ago has declined into a deficit of €0.7 billion. Strikingly, this shift concerns traditional automotive components, segments in which Europe has historically been a dominant player,” it notes.

“If we allow our value chains to erode, we will lose factories but also our strategic autonomy and risk trading European technological sovereignty for a permanent dependency on lower-cost and less regulated regions,” CLEPA concludes.

 

The European Carbon Borden Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) and the proposed safeguard changes are giving additional momentum to GravitHy’s plans to build a low-carbon hot-briquetted iron plant in Fos-sur-Mer, southern France, Kallanish learns from the company. 

GravitHy chief executive José Noldin was present at the public consultation meeting held in Fos-sur-Mer earlier this month. He confirms to Kallanish that several million euros have already been invested, as the project enters a concrete implementation phase. The project “is going forward gradually and steadily… CBAM and safeguards are creating some momentum,” he comments.

Towards the end of this year the firm will file permit applications and expects to be granted all major authorisations, according to a public consultation report. The first quarter of 2027 will be dedicated to the final investment decision. The construction phase is scheduled to run from 2027 to 2029, with industrial testing starting from mid-2029. First production is targeted for 2030.

The hydrogen-based HBI plant will have a capacity of 2 million tonnes/year by 2030. During the meeting, questions were raised regarding the cost of hydrogen, the project’s profitability and the market’s ability to absorb a low-carbon product. GravitHy states that pricing details remain confidential but notes that the economic analysis has been sufficient to secure investor backing.

“Projections show that by 2030, the cost of a green product could align with that of a conventional product, notably thanks to the availability and competitive pricing of low-carbon electricity in the region,” the consultation document states.

Meanwhile, Jacques Yves Floch, the ceo of the Marcegaglia plant in Fos-sur-Mer, outlined the progress of the Mistral project, Marcegaglia’s future coil plant in the region. Antonio Marcegaglia confirms to Kallanish that the Mistral expansion project will increase the current plant’s output from 200,000t to 2.15m t/y of coil.

Logistics is a key factor for the site’s competitiveness. Marcegaglia confirms he intends to limit road transport and prioritise rail and inland waterway solutions for raw materials sourcing. Scrap supplies will be sourced predominantly from Europe, particularly from France and northern Europe. The plant currently produces bearings and engineering steels, including ingots, billets and blooms.

The GravitHy and Mistral projects are closely linked. Marcegaglia is an investor in GravitHy and is set to become an off-taker for the project’s output (see Kallanish passim).

 

Rebar and wire rod prices in the Polish domestic market remained stable in the week to Friday February 20, despite mills’ attempt to push for higher offer levels, Fastmarkets heard.
According to market sources, mills were increasing their offers on long steel products, but buyers were still resisting rises while demand remained low in the country during the winter months.

For wire rod, drawing quality, offers from mills were reported within the range of 2,900-2,950 zloty ($812-826) per tonne delivered, but estimates of workable prices were lower, at 2,700-2,780 zloty per tonne delivered.

A deal for small tonnages of wire rod was heard at 2,750 zloty per tonne delivered.

“Demand is stable but low. We are not seeing increases yet,” one market source said, adding that demand for wire rod should pick up in the spring when consumption from key sectors, such as construction, was expected to increase.

Another trade source said that the market would not yet “accept” price increases, because end-customers were in no rush to place new orders.

Fastmarkets’ weekly price assessment for steel wire rod (drawing quality), domestic, delivered Poland, was 2,700-2,780 zloty per tonne on Wednesday, unchanged week on week.

Meanwhile, for rebar, offers from mills varied within the range of 2,550-2,600 zloty per tonne CPT. No new trading was reported during the assessment period.

Fastmarkets’ weekly price assessment for steel reinforcing bar (rebar), domestic, cpt Poland, was 2,550-2,600 zloty per tonne on Wednesday, also stable week on week.

 

European domestic hot-rolled coil prices continued to move higher, supported by extended mill lead times and a lack of meaningful competition from imports. With buyers facing limited availability from regional producers and few attractively priced foreign offers, mills gradually pushed through higher prices despite cautious demand.

Producers gradually started offering May-delivery coils with April-delivery order books largely filled at some mills.

The market leader ArcelorMittal reported offers for Northern Europe for May-delivery coils at €720 ($848.35) per tonne delivered last week, netting back to €705 per tonne ex-works.

Mills in Germany followed the pricing direction set by the market leader with May-delivery offers heard at €700 per tonne ex-works versus €680 per tonne ex-works for April delivery.

A producer from the Benelux area applied a less bullish increase to offers, with May-delivery coils available at €680 per tonne ex-works versus €670 per tonne ex-works for April delivery.

“Italian and German coil producers are continuing to push for price increases, following ArcelorMittal’s lead, despite sluggish market activity. Mills cite long lead times and limited import competition as key support,” one buyer said.

Customer uptake of higher prices remained slow, with some minor volumes heard sold at €690 per tonne ex-works last week. This week buyers continued to say that this price was possible only for small tonnages, with estimates of workable prices varying within the range of €650-680 per tonne ex-works, with no major sales heard during the day.

“Prices are definitely not driven by demand but rather fear of higher import costs [carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism and safeguard],” another source said.

Fastmarkets’ daily steel hot-rolled coil index domestic, exw Northern Europe was €682.29 per tonne on Monday February 23, up by €2.29 per tonne from €680 per tonne on Friday February 20.

The index was up by €22.29 per tonne week on week and by €39.79 per tonne month on month.

Italian producers followed a similar strategy. May-delivery coil offers varied within the range of €680-700 per tonne ex-works, depending on the producer. April-delivery coils were available at €670-680 per tonne ex-works.

Estimates of workable prices varied within a wide range of €650-670 per tonne ex-works, with one seller saying they were not ready to sell below €660 per tonne ex-works.

“There is no reliable upcoming demand, restocking is only done to secure completion of contracted orders,” the second source said.

Fastmarkets’ daily steel hot-rolled coil index domestic, exw Italy was calculated at €665.63 per tonne ex-works on February 23 versus €661.32 per tonne ex-works on February 20.

The index was up by €14.03 per tonne week on week and by €30.63 per tonne month on month.

HRC import offers from Turkey for April shipment were heard in Italy at €520 per tonne CFR, excluding anti-dumping duties and carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) costs, according to the first source.

A third source said Turkish material was available at €640 per tonne DDP in Southern Europe and Algerian coil was offered at €630 per tonne DDP in the North and the South.

Asian HRC offers from traders were reported at €660-670 per tonne DDP, including CBAM and anti-dumping duties, for April-May shipment, the first source added.