Brussels, 4 March 2025 — President Ursula von der Leyen today convened leading figures from European industry, social partners, and key stakeholders to launch the Strategic Dialogue on the Future of the European Steel Sector. The initiative marks the beginning of an inclusive and collaborative process aimed at addressing the critical challenges faced by the sector and ensuring its continued success as a key driver of the European economy.

Speaking at the event, President von der Leyen emphasized the central role that steel has played in the European Union’s history and economy. „Our European Union was built on a community of coal and steel,” she stated. „Steel is everywhere, from wind power to defense. But European steelmakers are at a crossroads, facing the challenges of necessary decarbonisation and partly unfair global competition.”

The Strategic Dialogue is designed to produce a tailored plan to help the sector decarbonise while strengthening its global competitiveness. Von der Leyen underlined that the European Union must join forces to „make a strong business case for steel made in Europe.”

The steel industry remains a cornerstone of regional economies across the European Union, supporting over 2.5 million jobs. However, the sector is currently under significant pressure. Production costs have risen sharply due to high energy prices, while falling product prices, driven by increasing global non-market overcapacity and declining demand, have squeezed margins. As a result, many steelmakers have been unable to invest in the clean technologies necessary for decarbonisation.

Today’s launch of the dialogue builds on recent efforts under the Clean Industrial Deal, adopted in February. That initiative introduced measures to help energy-intensive industries lower energy costs and manage global overcapacities. It also set out strategies to create lead markets for low-carbon steel and mobilize more than €100 billion in support of clean manufacturing projects across the EU.

The outcomes of the Strategic Dialogue will feed into a forthcoming Action Plan on Steel and Metals, which will outline additional sector-specific priority actions. It will also propose long-term measures to replace the current trade defense safeguards, set to expire in June 2026. Among the issues to be addressed are ensuring the commercial viability of clean steel production, determining effective responses to unfair and unjustified trading practices, and developing sustainable alternatives to existing safeguard measures.

President von der Leyen has tasked Executive Vice-President Stéphane Séjourné with presenting the Action Plan on 19 March 2025. The European Parliament and the Council will be closely involved throughout the process and will be regularly informed and consulted.

The European steel industry plays a vital role in the EU economy, contributing around €80 billion to GDP. It is critical to multiple industrial value chains, providing essential inputs for sectors such as automotive, construction, defense, net-zero technologies, and electric vehicles. With approximately 500 production sites spread across 22 Member States, steel remains a key enabler of Europe’s strategic autonomy.