At the “Tackling the steel crisis: boosting competitive and sustainable European steel and maintaining quality jobs” session of the European Parliament’s plenary debate held in Strasbourg, France, yesterday, October 23, members of the parliament debated how to tackle the dire situation facing the European steel industry and its workers, caused by global steel overcapacity, unfair trade, low demand in the manufacturing industry and high energy prices in the EU.
Pointing out that the EU accounts for only seven percent of global steel production, Helena Dalli, member of the European Commission, stated that, to reverse this trend and regain competitiveness in the global steel industry, the EU needs large investments in new clean steel projects. She commented, “Internally, we must ensure the steel industry benefits from electricity at competitive prices. Externally, we need to watch out for imports of cheap third country steel resulting from a growing global overcapacity, which pushes down prices and distorts trade.” She went on to say that the EU will work intensely in the coming months to implement structural measures by the time its safeguard measures expire on June 30, 2026.
Recalling that the parliament reacted to the energy prices crisis via different policies to mitigate the short-term impact while building resilience and supporting the green transition, Dalli said, “Decarbonization does not mean deindustrialization,” adding that the Clean Industrial Deal will set the agenda for the next five years, focusing on energy-intensive industries, especially steel.
Regarding jobs, Helena Dalli stated that the European steel industry has cut more than 20,000 jobs in the last 10 years and is currently reducing capacity, which reduces employment but also puts pressure on wages and working conditions. “In this process, reskilling and upskilling will be essential to support our workers. Social dialogue is a key driver for economic and social resilience, competitiveness, fairness, and sustainable growth,” Dalli said.
