Poland has prepared an Action Plan for the sustainable development of the steel industry

The Polish Ministry of Industry has presented a draft Action Plan for the Sustainable Development of the Steel Industry. The document covers key challenges facing the industry, including high energy consumption in production, competition from third countries, environmental restrictions, and excessive bureaucracy in environmental regulation.

This document was a response to the deepening crisis in the industry. Its publication opened a stage of preliminary consultations involving representatives of other ministries, trade unions, and employers.

The plan highlights six strategic areas: competitiveness, energy, ecology, decarbonization, circular economy, and security. It is intended to serve as a basis for further coordinated action at the national and European levels.

In particular, the plan provides for:

• reform of the public procurement system to restrict access to the Polish market for steel producers from countries that do not comply with EU environmental standards;
• expansion of compensation mechanisms for energy-intensive enterprises;
• simplifying environmental procedures, such as extending waste processing permits without new applications;
• supporting the use of renewable energy sources, including liberalizing rules for own energy production;
• allocating funds for research and development of low-carbon technologies in steel industry;
• lowering barriers to the import of scrap, which is critical for green steel industry.

According to the Ministry, the sustainable functioning of the steel industry is only possible if environmental, economic, and social factors are harmoniously combined. The plan was developed as a “quick response” to the problems, but it will form the basis for the further development strategy of the industry until 2050. A separate meeting with representatives of steel industry trade unions is planned in the near future.

It should be recalled that in 2024, Poland increased steel production by 10.1% compared to 2023 – from 6.4 million tons to 7.1 million tons. The country’s steel industry has moved away from the downward trend that had been ongoing since 2022.

During January-April 2025, Polish steelmakers increased steel production by 3.9% compared to the same period in 2024, to 2.48 million tons. The recovery is facilitated by the restart of an important enterprise, Huta Częstochowa. Since February 3, the plant has been operating at full capacity after more than a year of downtime.