EUROFER: High power prices put Europe’s steel competitiveness at risk

Europe’s steel industry is warning that persistently high electricity prices are undermining investment, decarbonisation and the sector’s global competitiveness. Speaking at the European Industry Summit in Antwerp, the European Steel Association (EUROFER) backed a joint industry call urging the EU to take urgent action to bring power costs down.

The call, released ahead of an informal meeting of EU leaders, highlights electricity prices as a central condition for Europe’s industrial strategy, economic resilience and climate ambitions. According to EUROFER, high and volatile power prices – compounded by taxes and carbon costs – have become one of the main obstacles to electrification and investment in low-carbon steelmaking.

The association said that restoring electricity prices closer to pre-2021 levels, around €44 per megawatt-hour, is essential if Europe wants to maintain and modernise its steel value chain.

Henrik Adam, President of EUROFER and Executive Chairman of Tata Steel Netherlands Holding, said: “Steel is at the heart of Europe’s industrial ambition, but it is being held back by sky high electricity prices and costs. If the EU wants investment in low-carbon steel to happen in Europe, it must deliver total electricity costs closer to €50/MWh – across all member states. Bringing power prices down is now the litmus test of Europe’s economic and climate credibility.”

Alongside structural reforms to decouple electricity prices from fossil fuel costs, EUROFER is also calling for short-term support measures to prevent further loss of production and investment capacity.

Axel Eggert, Director-General of EUROFER, warned: “Steelmakers are taking decisions now. Without effective relief from high electricity prices, investment will move elsewhere and capacity will be lost. Keeping steel production in Europe is not just an industrial issue - it is essential for Europe’s economic security and strategic autonomy.”

EUROFER was represented at the Antwerp summit by several senior industry figures, including vice-presidents Geert Van Poelvoorde, CEO of ArcelorMittal Europe, and Mario Arvedi Caldonazzo, CEO of Arvedi Group, alongside more than 500 industry leaders, the President of the European Commission and six EU heads of state.

Source and Photo: Eurofer