- €1.2B earmarked for Dunkirk electric arc furnace as part of ArcelorMittal’s decarbonization strategy in France.
- Total French investments reach €2B, underscoring long-term commitment to sustainable steel production.
- Industry optimism grows with new EU steel safeguards and anticipated CBAM enforcement post-summer.
ArcelorMittal has reaffirmed its commitment to decarbonizing its French operations with a planned €1.2 billion investment in a new electric arc furnace (EAF) in Dunkirk. This move signals renewed confidence in Europe’s steel market stability following recent EU policy developments.
“The leadership of the French Government has been key in the defense of the steel industry in France and Europe,” the company stated.
The European steel sector is emerging from its most severe crisis since 2009. Earlier delays to decarbonization projects were triggered by deteriorating market conditions. However, the European Commission’s Steel and Metal Action Plan, launched in March 2025, has shifted momentum, laying the groundwork for structural support through enhanced trade defense and carbon border adjustment mechanisms (CBAM).
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“It is now well understood that the European steel industry is facing its worst crisis since the financial crisis in 2009,” ArcelorMittal noted.
Revised safeguard measures—effective from April 1, 2025—are seen as an initial, but necessary, step. ArcelorMittal urges further action, specifically a 15% cap on imports relative to market demand and a robust CBAM that prevents resource shuffling.
“That would restore a level playing field on the European steel market,” the company emphasized.
Alongside the Dunkirk EAF, ArcelorMittal is investing €254 million in Dunkirk, €53 million in Fos, and €500 million in a new electric steels production unit in Mardyck, scheduled for completion by year-end. These bring the company’s total investment in French decarbonization and steel innovation to €2 billion.
Executives and investors monitoring Europe’s green industrial transformation will note that ArcelorMittal expects all regulatory and market conditions to align post-summer, unlocking the start of its Dunkirk EAF project and reinforcing its role in a more competitive and sustainable European steel industry.
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