Press releases » The 2040 climate target requires an industrial revolution, but its enabling conditions - laudably recognised in the Steel and Metals Plan - are not there yet, warns EUROFER
The 2040 climate target requires an industrial revolution, but its enabling conditions - laudably recognised in the Steel and Metals Plan - are not there yet, warns EUROFER
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Brussels, 02 July 2025 – The 90% climate target proposed today by the European Commission demands an unprecedented transformation of EU society and industry in just 15 years. The European steel industry is already doing its part, but a viable business case for the transition is still lacking. To enable it, the EU needs to implement the Steel and Metals Action Plan much more decisively, delivering a highly effective trade protection against global overcapacity, access to internationally competitive low carbon energy and scrap, and a watertight CBAM, says the European Steel Association.
“The EU steel industry supports the EU’s climate neutrality objective by 2050 and has planned over 60 industrial scale projects that could deliver major emission reductions by 2030 - if they receive timely and effective support. As conditions are not there, many projects have already a delay, and some have been stopped altogether. In this light, a 90% headline target for the entire EU by 2040 risks becoming an illusion as it implies near-total decarbonisation of energy-intensive industries such as steel, of transport and households in just 15 years from now. That is a monumental challenge”, pointed out Axel Eggert, Director General of the European Steel Association (EUROFER).
“Steel production in the EU has plunged by 26 million tonnes in just six years, and investment levels remain worryingly low. To reverse this deindustrialisation trend, Europe must double down its efforts in implementing the Steel and Metals Action Plan, adopting a much more decisive and assertive approach. The recent Clean Industrial Deal State Aid Framework (CISAF) and today’s Communication on delivering the Clean Industrial Deal on CBAM exports acknowledge the existing challenges, but their concrete impact is very limited to reverse the industry’s downward trajectory. We are still waiting for the big decisions”, he added.
The effectiveness of the CISAF – highly reliant on national implementation - is also limited by overly rigid rules on cumulation, duration and conditionality. These constraints are counterproductive for the long-term horizon of investments in the most electro-intensive sectors like steel.
Today’s announcement on CBAM exports lacks the actual legal proposal and its design; CBAM sectors had proposed a simple mechanism, based on free allocation for exports. It is very uncertain whether the proposed mechanism based on CBAM revenues delivers a similar impact, also for the most export-oriented European companies. The EU steel industry exports over €25 billion worth of steel products per year and around €40 billion of downstream steel goods subject to CBAM.
“We are seeing a lively debate around the level of the target and its flexibilities, but not enough discussion on the worrying status of EU industry, whose decarbonisation is central for the achievement of the target. One thing must be clear: climate ambition must be delivered through innovation and investments in Europe – not through deindustrialisation. That will only be possible if the EU business case for the transition is swiftly supported by the necessary enabling policies. For steel, this is internationally competitive low carbon energy, stopping the global steel overcapacity that destroys the EU steel market, an effective CBAM preventing any form of circumvention such as resource shuffling, retaining ferrous scrap within the EU for the circular economy and setting European content incentives. We remain committed to working with EU policymakers to develop and implement such a consistent and supportive framework without delay”, concluded Mr. Eggert.
Photo credits: EC - Audiovisual Service
Contact
Lucia Sali, Spokesperson and Head of Communications, +32 2 738 79 35, (l.sali@eurofer.eu)
About the European Steel Association (EUROFER)
EUROFER AISBL is located in Brussels and was founded in 1976. It represents the entirety of steel production in the European Union. EUROFER members are steel companies and national steel federations throughout the EU. The major steel companies and national steel federation of Turkey, Ukraine and the United Kingdom are associate members.
The European Steel Association is recorded in the EU transparency register: 93038071152-83.
About the European steel industry
The European steel industry is a world leader in innovation and environmental sustainability. It has a turnover of around €215 billion and directly employs around 298,000 highly-skilled people, producing on average 146 million tonnes of steel per year. More than 500 steel production sites across 22 EU Member States provide direct and indirect employment to millions more European citizens. Closely integrated with Europe’s manufacturing and construction industries, steel is the backbone for development, growth and employment in Europe.
Steel is the most versatile industrial material in the world. The thousands of different grades and types of steel developed by the industry make the modern world possible. Steel is 100% recyclable and therefore is a fundamental part of the circular economy. As a basic engineering material, steel is also an essential factor in the development and deployment of innovative, CO2-mitigating technologies, improving resource efficiency and fostering sustainable development in Europe.
Strasbourg, 07 October 2025 – The new trade measure presented today by the European Commission is a long-awaited proposal to forcefully defend the European steel sector, in full respect of WTO rules, from unfair imports flooding the EU market due to massive global overcapacity. The provisions unveiled by the Commission respond to the needs of the sector and represent a real lifeline for EU steelmakers and steelworkers. The European Parliament and the Council should therefore adopt it as a matter of urgency to enable its entry into force at the beginning of 2026, says the European Steel Association (EUROFER).
Brussels, 01/10/2025
With Europe’s steel industry at breaking point, industriAll Europe and the European Steel Association (EUROFER) held an emergency steel social summit to demand urgent action. Ahead of the announced Commission proposal addressing the impact of global steel excess capacity on the EU steel market, due by mid-October, the European social partners are united in calling for robust and effective trade measures. They also insist on fast and urgent implementation of the EU Steel and Metals Action Plan, especially concerning energy prices and demand. Maintaining the level of political ambition as promised in the EU Steel and Metals Action Plan is essential to restore steel’s competitiveness and save its green transition as well as steelworkers’ jobs across Europe.
Brussels, 19 September 2025 – Following today’s meeting between Commissioner for Trade Maroš Šefčovič and a delegation of European steel CEOs on the global steel crisis and the challenges facing the EU steel industry amid massive decarbonisation investments: