Issue 25, 2025 - This week's editorial: Steel M&A takes centre stage, India frustrates importers

ArcelorMittal was in the spotlight last week, carrying out significant mergers & acquisitions activity and painting a rosy picture for its US market outlook, while delivering a damning indication of business and investment prospects in Europe as it suspended decarbonisation in Germany. Arguably the most anticipated M&A transaction for some time finally closed last week, as Nippon Steel acquired US Steel in full, but with the US government retaining control over certain aspects like potential plant closures and headquarter relocation. There was no such luck for Liberty Steel Dudelange, which saw its proposed acquisition by Tosyali fall through due, ironically, to EU import restrictions. Indian authorities meanwhile caused an uproar by extending the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) compliance mandate to the feedstock used by foreign suppliers to produce steel exported to India, a move seen penalising firms reliant on imports. And all that before we get to any pricing…

ArcelorMittal suspended its planned €1.3 billion ($1.5 billion) direct reduced iron and electric arc furnace investments aimed at decarbonising its German operations in Bremen and Eisenhüttenstadt, despite already securing state aid for the projects.

Construction of the DRI-EAF facilities was scheduled to commence by June 2025, but the steelmaker says delays in green hydrogen becoming viable and the lack of competitiveness of natural gas-based DRI, along with high electricity prices, make the business case in Germany untenable. ArcelorMittal Europe chief executive Geert van Poelvoorde expressed concern the European Commission’s Steel and Metals Action Plan may not go far enough or happen quickly enough.

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