Thyssenkrupp Steel Europe is temporarily halting production of electrical steel in Europe, citing cheap Asian imports that threaten about 1,200 additional jobs. This development, not previously reported, underscores ongoing challenges facing Europe’s steel industry amid global trade tensions that have prompted Chinese producers to dump excess capacity onto the continent, undercutting prices by as much as 25% according to industry sources.
Thyssenkrupp Steel Europe (TKSE), the second-largest steelmaker in Europe, has already been cutting or outsourcing around 11,000 jobs as the crisis deepens and talks about selling the unit to India’s Jindal Steel International reach a pivotal stage. If the planned job cuts total 1,200, TKSE would raise cumulative reductions to roughly 45% of its workforce, up from about 40%.
From mid-December through year-end, TKSE plans to shut its electrical steel plants in Germany and France. Additionally, its Isbergues site in France is expected to run at half capacity starting in January for at least four months.
"Grain-oriented electrical steel is critical to Europe’s energy infrastructure and the broader energy transition," said Marie Jaroni, TKSE’s CEO. "We are firmly committed to sustaining European production and are actively pursuing measures to shield this strategically important product from unfair competition."
The market context shows GOES imports—grain-oriented electrical steel—tripling over the past three years, partly due to tighter U.S. steel tariffs that redirected supplies to Europe. By Eurostat figures, imports in 2025 have risen by about 50%. This trend mirrors disruptions seen across other sectors.
TKSE, alongside Poland’s Stalprodukt SA, remains among the last major European producers of GOES. In contrast, large exporters to Europe include China’s Baowu, South Korea’s POSCO, and Nippon Steel of Japan.
Source: Reuters reporting by Christoph Steitz and Tom Kaeckenhoff; editing by Elaine Hardcastle.
