Exclusive Belgium increased steel production by 5.9% y/y in January-February

In February, the country's steelmakers reduced steel production by 3.3% m/m, but increased it by 1% y/y

In January-February 2025, Belgian steelmakers increased steel production by 5.9% compared to the same period in 2024, to 1.18 million tons. Thus, the country is ranked 20th in the global ranking of steel producing countries (69) by the WorldSteel Association.

In February of this year, steel production in Belgium amounted to 580 thousand tons, down 3.3% month-on-month, but up 1% compared to February 2024.

In general, in February 2025, EU steelmakers reduced steel production by 7.1% y/y – to 3.3 million tons, and in January-February by 5.1% y/y – to 20.4 million tons.

In 2024, Belgium increased steel production by 21.1% compared to 2023, to 7.1 million tons, the highest since 2019. The sharp increase in steel production was driven, in particular, by the recovery of European industry, stabilization of energy markets and growth in orders in the construction and automotive sectors. The expansion of electric arc furnace capacity also played an important role, in line with the decarbonization policy.

There are 4 steel plants in Belgium, including one blast furnace plant in Ghent (annual capacity of 2.5 million tons of steel) and three electric arc furnaces – two in Charleroi (1 million tons and 800 thousand tons) and one in Genk (1.2 million tons). These are enterprises of ArcelorMittal, Aperam and Riva.