ArcelorMittal Poland permanently shuts down production at Huta Królewska
ArcelorMittal Poland has announced that production at the Huta Królewska steelworks in Chorzów will be permanently shut down, with all installations scheduled to come offline by the end of December this year. The company is preparing solutions to support the 270 employees currently working at the site, prioritizing job transfers within the group.
According to Marek Kempa, managing director of the long products division, the plant accounts for less than one percent of ArcelorMittal Poland’s total output. He noted that the age of the installations makes ensuring safe operations increasingly difficult, requiring major capital expenditure that cannot be justified in the current European steel market environment.
Before reaching this decision, the company made extensive efforts to sustain operations at Huta Królewska. Over recent years, ArcelorMittal Poland invested PLN 30 million ($8.21 million) in projects designed to expand the product range and improve quality. These included a new scale breaker, rolling stand modernization, a rail marking machine, and a new measurement and control block for rail production. The company also sought a strategic investor and explored joint venture options, though without success.
“This was a very difficult decision, given the long tradition and history of Huta Królewska,” said Wojciech Koszuta, president of the management board and CEO of ArcelorMittal Poland. He emphasized the company’s appreciation for the employees’ dedication and confirmed that everyone wishing to remain within the ArcelorMittal Poland structure will be offered opportunities.
Tata Netherlands shifts eastbound transports to trains
Tata Steel Nederland says it is replacing a significant portion of road and water transport with rail freight, particularly for deliveries to customers in southern Poland and Slovakia.
This means a shift for about 160,000 tonnes/year of steel that used to be shipped by truck and vessel to nearby ports, followed by approximately 600km of road transport. For destinations in eastern Europe, three trains loaded with steel coils will now depart every two weeks.
In the Netherlands and Germany, these trains run on “green” electricity, Kallanish learns. The CO₂ savings result from intensive cooperation with around 50 customers, including major automotive brands as well as clients in engineering, construction and packaging sectors, Tata notes. The new rail route eliminates 3.5 million road km annually and achieves a substantial CO₂ reduction of around 4,300 tonnes/year, it adds.
According to logistics director Martin van der Meer, train transport also saves packaging materials, as the steel no longer requires seaworthy protection. “And it is faster – within 30 hours, the steel reaches the customer,” he concludes.
Christian Koehl Germany
Regulation alone will not solve problem of steel industry’s lack of competitiveness
SteelOrbis talked to Piotr Ślusarz, president of Polish Metallurgical Chamber of Industry and Commerce, about latest developments in EU steel industry.
How would you describe the current steel demand trends in the EU steel market across major sectors (construction, automotive, machinery, etc.)?
The visible economic slowdown in Europe is negatively impacting demand for steel and, consequently, demand for ferrous scrap. Low steel demand is under pressure from imports of steel products from non-EU sources, including the import of steel products and semi-finished products from Ukraine, which is most damaging to the Polish economy.
How are high energy prices affecting output, investment and competitiveness?
Unfortunately, in Poland we have some of the highest electricity prices in the EU, which results in lower margins and very often in the inability to achieve profitability in industries such as steel production or scrap recycling.
Do you foresee further consolidation or restructuring in the European steel industry?
If the process of restricting the trade in ferrous scrap continues, the only plants processing ferrous scrap in Poland will remain those belonging to steel mills.
What are the effects of geopolitical developments on trade routes?
The restrictions introduced in the WSR will affect the trade routes for ferrous scrap and significantly weaken the scrap industry, which is responsible for achieving recycling and recovery levels for many key sectors in terms of GDP generation for the country.
What are your expectations for steel demand and prices in the short to medium term?
Observing the direction the EU is following, the industry is dismayed by the months-long decline in scrap metal values and the quantitative reduction in demand for ferrous scrap in Europe.
Are you optimistic or cautious about the EU steel sector’s medium-term competitiveness?
The competitiveness of the steel and scrap recycling sectors is burdened with significant costs and struggles with expensive electricity, especially in Poland.
How do you evaluate the latest announcement from the EU regarding the safeguard policy?
The EU should ensure not only support and protection for the steel industry, but also for the recycling sector. Without a scrap metal industry, the steel industry will be unable to meet the requirements and expectations of EU industry.
Are these trade measures effective in ensuring a level playing field, or do they distort competition?
The focus should be on resolving the causes of the lack of competitiveness. Regulation alone will not solve the problem of the steel industry’s lack of competitiveness. Regulation cannot be effective since we are dependent on steel imports from outside the EU, have insufficient production capacity and lack energy infrastructure.
What do you think the main challenges of CBAM are and what effects do you anticipate on trade flows?
I think it will seal off some trade flows, blocking steel products and semi-finished goods entering the EU from the east (Ukraine and Russia) via transit countries.
Do you think current EU funding mechanisms are sufficient to support the green transition in steel?
Support mechanisms apply only to steel mills, and not to all of them, only to those that meet the appropriate criteria. For this mechanism to be effective, this support must cover the entire supply chain, including the scrap industry.
How do you see the balance between environmental targets and global competitiveness?
To achieve environmental goals, it is necessary to create market conditions that provide opportunities for competitiveness. Without these conditions, achieving environmental goals will mean abandoning local industry in the EU.
Poland sanctions steel firms bypassing EU Russia ban
Poland has imposed autonomous sanctions, in addition to EU measures, on STEELTRADE Sp. z o.o. – formerly EMK Group – and OMNI GRP Sp. z o.o. This is for indirectly supporting Russia’s war against Ukraine through exports and re-exports of metal and steel products banned under EU sanctions.
Poland’s National Revenue Administration reports that STEELTRADE and OMNI GRP exported steel sheet, plate, and flat-rolled products made of alloyed and non-alloyed steel or cast iron, including DILLIDUR high-strength abrasion-resistant sheets. The firms may also have exported Uddeholm Dievar steel, a premium-grade alloy valued for its exceptional strength, lightness, and durability, widely used in defecse manufacturing. Authorities therefore presume these materials were destined for Russian defence factories, indirectly supporting the country’s military industry.
STEELTRADE, registered in 2019 and controlled by Belarusian citizen Uladzimir Liashchuk, exported nearly PLN 30 million ($8.25m) worth of steel to Russia in 2021-22, later redirecting over PLN 110m to Kazakhstan and then to a Hong Kong intermediary re-exporting to Russia, according to Polish authorities. Over 200 shipments reportedly ended up in Russia.
OMNI GRP, founded in 2022 and led by Andrei Karpovich with Liashchuk and Veranika Pental, carried out similar exports to Turkey, China, and Kazakhstan, with intermediaries supplying Russia.
The sanctions, announced on 7 October, aim to curb Russia’s industrial potential and limit its access to critical steel inputs, Kallanish notes.
Elina Virchenko UAE
Stalprofil increases deliveries, foresees 2026 market recovery
Domestic demand boosted Polish steel distributor and gas pipeline contractor Stalprofil’s first-half-of-2025 deliveries, but increased costs ate into profit.
The firm’s consolidated revenue surged 60% on-year in H1 to PLN 1.18 billion ($314.7 million) but net profit slumped 43% to PLN 7m due to higher cost of goods sold and cost of materials. Domestic sales share in revenue rose 5 percentage points to 95.1% and exports share halved to 4.9%.
Exports were impacted by weak demand and falling steel prices in Europe, as well as the strong zloty against the euro.
“The announced expansion of infrastructure projects in the second half of 2025 should increase demand for steel, especially bars, pipes, sheets, and sections. However, only in 2026 will the steel market be able to count on a more noticeable demand impulse,” Stalprofil notes in its latest earnings report seen by Kallanish.
Steel products sales rose 25% on-year in H1 to 139,703 tonnes, with steel structures sales flat at 1,080t.
Pipe insulation sales, falling under the firm’s gas transmission network infrastructure segment, soared 180% to 1.18 million square metres. During this period, the group began implementing contracts signed in 2024 for the construction of gas pipelines.
Polish pipemaker Ferrum and ArcelorMittal were the group’s largest suppliers, while Ferrum was also its largest customer, followed by gas network operator Gaz-System.
Adam Smith Austria
ArcelorMittal Poland calls for decarbonisation support
ArcelorMittal Poland has called for support in its decarbonisation efforts as it says mills cannot bear the additional costs in challenging market conditions, the company told McCloskey on 13 June.
Decarbonisation requires installation of new equipment and implementation of new technologies to meet the EU’s CO2 emission targets. And the transition needs to be done under strain of a challenging market, which already has some additional costs that non-EU steelmakers do not face, including the EU Emission Trading System (ETS). In addition, energy costs in Europe are the highest in the world, ArcelorMittal said.
The EU aims to achieve a 55% reduction in emissions by 2030, and to become carbon-neutral by 2050.
The EU market has been under pressure from the rapid rise of competitive steel imports: “Imports from outside the EU, where production costs are significantly lower, already satisfy almost 30% of apparent steel consumption in Europe,” the company said.
The statement has been confirmed by market participants who cited low import offers for hot-rolled coil as one of the driving forces behind the domestic price drop.
“Against this backdrop, no steel producer can bear the costs of the transition to low carbon-emissions steelmaking alone,” ArcelorMittal Poland said.
The steelmaker also calls for a reduction of energy costs and effective mechanism to prevent carbon leakage.
“We are glad that the European Commission has taken into account the majority of the steel industry’s requests in the Steel and Metals Action Plan. Now, it will be crucial to implement these measures quickly,” the producer said.
The European Commission unveiled its official European Steel and Metals Action Plan on 19 March.
ArcelorMittal Poland has spent over 1 billion zlotys (around $270 million) on projects aimed at reducing its environmental impact and increasing energy efficiency, including blast furnace overhaul. For additional details on steel decarbonisation initiatives in Europe, please see McCloskey’s European Green Steel Profile.
ArcelorMittal’s Dąbrowa Górnicza plant is one of several producers of 120-metre long rail used in high-speed rail.
Maria Tanatar
Polish steel industry: “era of naïve globalisation” is coming to an end
Polish steel industry is urging Prime Minister Donald Tusk to follow through on his recent promise to “repolonise” the national economy, and authorities to publish the eagerly-anticipated national steel plan.
Earlier this month, Tusk said the “era of naïve globalisation” is coming to an end and that the government, rather than observing passively, would take a more active role in supporting the national economy. This will include measures such as mandating state-owned firms and projects to choose domestic contractors and suppliers. It will also mean supporting the conversion of some plants to produce military equipment.
Poland has a high share of state ownership in the economy. One of these assets is now plate producer Huta Czestochowa (HCz), which is in the process of being acquired by the defence ministry. Tusk said the move has been made to rescue the steelworks from the troubled ownership of Liberty, but also so that Poland’s army and defence suppliers have raw materials supply. State-owned assets will focus not only on profit but also long-term public interest and economic security.
Tomasz Slezak, chief executive at state-owned Weglokoks, currently operating Huta Czestochowa, stresses Tusk’s comments do not spell nationalisation of industry but rather mobilising business to act in the interest of national security.
“We know that, as a rule, private businesses are better run [than state firms], so [nationalisation] is not a good direction to go in,” he said during last week’s European Economic Congress in Katowice attended by Kallanish. Prime Minister Tusk simply wants to ensure that Polish businesses benefit.
Globalisation previously served the interests and prosperity of the West but has ended with technology being transferred to the rest of the world and with huge costs for Europe, he added. “I have the impression that everyone in Europe has answered the question, we need industry. Even if it’s due to the threat of war, we need the steel industry,” he noted. In Europe, this push has happened slowly, but it will dictate future economic direction, he added.
Stalprofil chief executive Henryk Orczykowski said repolonisation is a “media slogan”, which in fact means protecting what is Polish and local jobs. He added: “My heart, as well as probably the heart of many businessmen has been filled with hope … Prime Minister, do as you say! Put it into action.” Even if the measures are only 50% effective, there will be relief for business in the form of deregulation, market protection and energy, he noted.
Asked whether HCz can satisfy the needs of Poland’s defence industry, Slezak said it can satisfy a portion and aims to increase this.
Przemsylaw Sztuczkowski, ceo of Cognor, which owns Huta Stali Jakosciowych (HSJ), another steelmaker serving defence, said he was more optimistic, claiming Polish industry can meet defence demand. HSJ already supplies plate for Polish tank production and the Polish army recently placed a new order.
Orczykowski warned of the importance of indigenous steel production to national security. While importing steel components during peacetime is fine, “if war really does break out on our territory, everyone will look after their own – no one will supply that to us,” he said. The state must therefore have an influence over this production, as well as over who builds the critical infrastructure required to ensure society functions, he added.
Since all parties are agreed that steel is critical, measures are now required to support the industry, said Polish Steel Association (HIPH) ceo Moryslaw Motyka. State aid should be extended to greenfield steelmaking projects to, for example, ensure supply of hitherto not produced types of steel for defence. CBAM must be extended to cover steel-containing goods, and an EU safeguard replacement is needed, he added. Energy costs must meanwhile be below €60/MWh.
The Polish government has drafted a national steel plan, which it plans to publish imminently to invite consultation from industry, said Grzegorz Jagielski from the Polish industry ministry’s mining and metallurgy department.
Sztuczkowski, who was involved in drafting the document, urged the government to forget about further consultations and immediately implement the measures outlined. “We drew up … a very good document, in my opinion. A document which absolutely includes all the proposals that should be realised … There is absolutely no time left for consultation.”
Adam Smith Poland
Weglokoks agrees restructuring for Huta Pokoj
Weglokoks has signed a restructuring agreement designed to inject financing into stockist and fabricator subsidiary Huta Pokoj and prepare it for investments into upgrading production capacity, Kallanish learns from the Polish state-owned group.
The agreement was prepared over months with the help of external advisors. It entails cost and process optimisation, debt relief and asset reorganisation, and the implementation of an investment package across the Huta Pokoj Profile and Huta Pokoj Konstrukcje business units.
The plan will “allow us to sort out the situation and prepare the firms for further development. Given the current market realities, there is no room for inefficiency – what’s needed to ensure continuity are specific actions and stable foundations,” says Weglokoks chief executive Tomasz Slezak.
The plan foresees the construction of a new welded structures fabrication hall and the modernisation of selected technological lines. No layoffs are envisaged. In future, a similar agreement is planned for the third unit, Huta Pokoj SA, which however does not possess any production assets.
Weglokoks is also leasing plate maker Huta Czestochowa.
Adam Smith Poland
Polish industry laments EU deal generality, non-urgency
Polish steel industry representatives have reacted with disappointment to the EU’s Clean Industrial Deal announced this week, due to its lack of concrete measures and short-term energy cost relief.
The long-awaited industrial deal was announced by the European Commission on Wednesday.
Polish Steel Association (HIPH) chief executive Mirosław Motyka says the lack in the industrial deal of a so-called “bridge electricity price” measure for energy-intensive firms is a big disappointment, as is the lack of measures to reduce fees and taxes linked to energy prices.
While the Affordable Energy Action Plan allows member states to lower taxation levels on electricity and eliminate some levies, it poses other challenges. “We see new threats, such as flexibility criteria that energy-intensive industry are unable to meet, as well as already known solutions, such as PPA contracts, which only have limited potential to reduce energy prices for our plants in the medium term,” Motyka tells Wirtualny Nowy Przemysl.
The European Commission is also avoiding indicating the causes of increased energy prices and is not taking any action to reduce them, he adds.
A year has passed since the Antwerp Declaration and yet the Commission “has only presented very general propositions for changes”, Motyka notes. In that time, the global economy has changed and a new US administration is in place, which is redefining the rules of global business. “The EU industry needs real, specific and fast action,” he asserts.
Henryk Orczykowski, ceo of Polish distributor Stalprofil, says the industrial deal lacks fundamental reform of the ETS emissions trading system.
“The current regulations allowing financial institutions and banks to trade emission rights allow for speculation in these securities. This alters the original function of emission rights, which is to encourage emitters to reduce emissions,” he notes.
This also causes the prices of emissions to become inflated. “This has a direct impact on the costs of emissions incurred by the industry and significantly increases the operating costs of the industry in the European Union,” he adds.
Market participants remain hopeful more concrete measures to support the steel industry will be announced in the Commission’s Steel and Metals Action Plan, due for release in the spring. This will be preceded by the Strategic Dialogue On Steel on 4 March, chaired by Commission President Ursula von der Leyen.
Adam Smith Poland
Polish rebar, wire rod prices increase on bullish sentiment among producers
But buyers shared mixed expectations about the future market development.
Rebar
Polish mills were heard offering March production rebar at 2,700 zloty ($677) per tonne CPT during the assessment week. This is also largely the level at which the material was offered in the previous week.
Industry sources told Fastmarkets that mills were quite firm on their offers, willing to grant some discounts by just 20-30 zloty per tonne.
“With these offer levels, local mills are trying to compensate for the high scrap and energy prices in the domestic market,” a distributor source told Fastmarkets.
According to industry sources, the Polish market for domestic scrap has become more active recently with some rebar producers needing to replenish their stocks. Besides, the steel slab and plate producer Huta Czestochowa has resumed operations recently and has also started to purchase scrap more actively.
This increased the demand in the domestic market and pushed the local scrap prices higher by 90-100 zloty per tonne compared to the previous month.
Fastmarkets’ sources estimated the workable market level for rebar at 2,650-2,670 zloty per tonne CPT, with the lower end of the price range considered achievable for bigger volumes.
As a result, Fastmarkets’ weekly price assessment for steel reinforcing bar (rebar), domestic, cpt Poland, was 2,650-2,670 zloty per tonne on Friday, up by 20-30 zloty per tonne from 2,620-2,650 zloty per tonne on February 14.
But industry sources shared mixed opinions on how the market will develop.
“It seems that the sentiment has improved, and most market participants expect that rebar prices will be stable to slightly higher in the short run,” the distributor source told Fastmarkets.
Prices were also supported by slightly better demand.
“Even in Germany, there is not such a big increase in rebar prices,” the source added.
A producer source confirmed that demand was “not low” and “much better now” than in January.
But a second distributor source was more pessimistic.
“I think the prices will fall again by mid-March. The demand will improve more significantly in May/June, when [more] money from EU funds [are expected to enter the Polish economy],” the second distributor said.
In terms of imports, German mills were heard offering rebar to Poland at €630 ($659) per tonne delivered.
Wire rod
Prices for Polish low-carbon drawing quality wire rod also increased during the assessment week, supported by bullish sentiment among producers.
Polish mills were officially offering the material at 2,900 zloty per tonne CPT.
Fastmarkets’ sources estimated the workable market level at 2,800-2,850 zloty per tonne CPT.
One buyer source told Fastmarkets that for small volumes Polish mills would even insist on 2,900 zloty per tonne CPT.
Fastmarkets’ price assessment for steel wire rod (drawing quality), domestic, delivered Poland, was 2,800-2,850 zloty per tonne on Friday, up by 30-50 zloty per tonne from 2,750-2,820 zloty per tonne on February 14.
Regarding imports, offers for mesh-grade wire rod from Ukraine to Poland were heard at €620 per tonne delivered Poland.
Offers of low-carbon drawing quality wire rod from Italy to Poland were heard at €660 per tonne delivered, but according to sources a discount of €10 per tonne could be achieved in negotiations.
The Czech Republic was heard offering low-carbon drawing quality wire rod to Poland at €660-680 per tonne delivered.
