Slovenian SIJ hopes for better prospects for steel industry in 2025

The company expects demand to grow and counts on the EU's support in addressing energy prices

Slovenian steel company Slovenian Steel Group (SIJ), despite the difficult situation in the industry, is optimistic about the prospects for 2025. This is reported by Kallanish with reference to the company’s data.

In 2024, SIJ recorded revenue of €1 billion, which is in line with the previous year. At the same time, EBITDA decreased to €51 million compared to €73.3 million in 2023, and the net loss amounted to €15.4 million.

“The steel market is expected to start recovering this year, and demand for certain products is already growing,” said SIJ Vice President Tibor Šimonka.

According to the company’s forecasts, demand will continue to grow in 2026 due to lower interest rates and increased investment.

“The operating results for the first two months of this year show that we can reach or even exceed the forecasts made in November,” added Šimonka.

For 2025, SIJ forecasts revenues in the range of €1.05-1.11 billion and EBITDA of €61-85 million. High energy prices and competition with China remain the main challenges for steelmakers.

SIJ is also monitoring possible changes in trade relations with the US. The company generates about 10% of its revenue from the US market and expects further growth in demand.

“A compromise is likely to be found regarding the new US tariffs on steel imports, possibly in the form of quotas,” said SIJ Vice President.

The European Commission is preparing a plan to support the competitiveness of the steel industry, which SIJ hopes to see in the near future.

As GMK Center reported earlier, due to the challenging conditions in the EU, SIJ is considering expansion to the Middle East market. In particular, the company is planning to build a €1.5 billion electrical steel and hot-rolled steel plant in Saudi Arabia. This will allow SIJ to strengthen its position in markets with lower energy costs and growing demand.