voestalpine cuts 340 jobs in Styria

Specifically, the company is reducing a total of 340 jobs at the Kindberg and Mürzzuschlag locations - 280 permanent positions and about 60 temporary positions, as CEO Herbert Eibensteiner announced on Wednesday during the presentation of the half-year results.

voestalpine: Mürzzuschlag Location Secured

"This means for voestalpine Bleche in Mürzzuschlag that the location will remain, but we are focusing on special products and can secure three-quarters of the jobs," said the CEO. At the voestalpine Böhler Bleche plant in Mürzzuschlag, around 450 people were recently employed.

At voestalpine Tubulars in Kindberg, around 1,150 employees are currently working. "In Kindberg, we will reduce operations from three to two shifts starting in January," announced Eibensteiner. According to the information, around 160 employees and about 60 temporary workers are affected by the job cuts. Seamless steel tubes for industries ranging from automotive to oil and gas are produced at this location.

In the coming weeks, a social plan will be developed in close cooperation with the works council. "Where possible and where there is a need for personnel, we will offer employees the opportunity to work at other locations," added the CEO, also referring to the steel foundation established decades ago. This is intended to support job searches and help with the development of personal and professional qualifications.

"Urgent Need for Action"

As early as September, Voest admitted to having an "urgent need for action" at the Upper Styrian location Mürzzuschlag. For example, sales volumes, especially in tool steel, continue to decline sharply, it was said.

voestalpine currently does not expect any improvement in the economic situation in the coming months. It will also "continue to consistently implement" its ongoing reorganization measures, such as at the German automotive components locations and in the High Performance Metals Division, the company announced on Wednesday morning during the announcement of the results for the first half of 2025/26.

"We are consolidating plants in Germany and adapting to the low demand," Eibensteiner explained at the press conference. The German location Birkenfeld will be closed on December 1. "We are also facing a difficult situation at several locations in Styria," emphasized the CEO.

US Tariffs Burden

At voestalpine Tubulars, "the significant burdens from US tariffs in the main sales market USA as well as the persistently low oil prices have led to a noticeable decline in sales volumes," the company reported.

At voestalpine Böhler Bleche in Mürzzuschlag, a strategic project was initiated by the end of the year to position the company and its processes in such a way that, despite high energy and location costs as well as economically challenging conditions (such as US tariffs), products can be sold at marketable prices.

"The closure of the site is no longer on the agenda - the Mürzzuschlag site will be retained, but major cuts are unavoidable," said voestalpine. Böhler Bleche is a Voest subsidiary of the High Performance Metals Division and achieved a turnover of 138 million euros in 2024/25.

Group-wide Personnel Reductions

The personnel adjustments are also being made across the group. The global workforce was already reduced by 4.1 percent from 51,733 to 49,614 employees (full-time equivalents) by the end of September compared to the previous year's reporting date. "Of course, there are efficiency measures worldwide in the group, and naturally, we cannot rule out reducing personnel - but to a significantly lesser extent," said the CEO. "We also have bigger problems at the two sites in Styria."

Overall, Voest employs around 9,300 people in Styria. They generated a turnover of 5.1 billion euros in the 2024/25 financial year.

At the company headquarters in Linz, "essentially no reduction measures are planned," said Eibensteiner. "Of course, there are certain restrictions for hiring," he added.

Profit Increase Amid Declining Sales

Under overall difficult conditions, there was a profit increase in the first six months of the 2025/26 financial year despite declining sales compared to the previous period. The result after taxes rose "in a challenging environment" by 8.6 percent to 198.6 million euros.

Sales revenues decreased by 5.6 percent from 8 to 7.6 billion euros. "The US tariffs for us, mostly at 50 percent, lead to a decline in sales volumes," reported Eibensteiner. Despite continuing challenging conditions, voestalpine was able to achieve a very solid result. Especially the areas of railway infrastructure, aviation, and storage technology developed very well.

The outlook for earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization (EBITDA) for the fiscal year 2025/26 remains unchanged at 1.4 to 1.55 billion euros. In the first six months, EBITDA stabilized according to the half-year financial report at 722.4 million euros (plus 0.6 percent).

(APA/Red)

This article has been automatically translated, read the original article here.