Voestalpine is pursuing production cutbacks in Austria and Germany, which include layoffs, since it does not expect the economic situation to improve in the coming months.
At voestalpine Tubulars, capacity adjustments may become necessary at the site in Kindberg, Austria, a decision which will be made by the end of this calendar year. The unit is exposed to considerable burden caused by tariffs in the main sales market of the US, and persistently low oil prices are leading to a noticeable decline in sales volumes, voestalpine explains.
During a video conference on Wednesday attended by Kallanish, chief executive Herbert Eibensteiner underlined the strong dependence of tubular products on the US market, and warned that production in Kindberg will be reduced from three to two shifts.
Also in Austria, voestalpine Böhler Bleche in Mürzzuschlag, a unit of the High Performance Metals division, faces capacity adjustments. The group says it is running a strategy project with the goal of positioning the unit and its processes in a way that enables products to be sold at marketable prices, despite difficult conditions.
In Germany, voestalpine will continue with consolidation at the Automotive Components sites it announced earlier. Eibensteiner noted that the difficulties of that division are not impacting the automotive steel strip made in Linz, which he said keeps performing well.
In the group’s first fiscal half-year – April through September 2025 – revenue declined by 5.6% year-on-year to €7.6 billion ($8.8 billion). Consolidated earnings before taxes increased by 12% to €278 million, while profit after tax rose by 8.6% to €199m.
Christian Koehl Germany
