But 1,000 fewer jobs

Voestalpine Reports 46% Increase in Profit in the First Half of the Year

Voestalpine is headquartered in Linz.(Bild: APA/HELMUT FOHRINGER)

The Linz-based steel group Voestalpine reported a surge in profits in the first half of 2026/27 “in an extremely challenging environment.” Thanks to positive one-time effects totaling around 100 million euros, profit after taxes rose by 46 percent compared to the same period last year, reaching 290 million euros.

Revenue remained at the previous year’s level at 7.7 billion euros (7.6 billion euros). The full-year forecast was lowered.

“Our focus remained on reorganizing low-margin business segments and implementing targeted international growth projects,” said Group CEO Herbert Eibensteiner. However, the ongoing war in the Middle East and the resulting sharp rise in energy and logistics costs, in particular, dampened earnings potential for the second half of the year. In addition, according to the Group, energy projects in the crisis-stricken region are being further postponed. Logistical challenges and, for the time being, additional U.S. tariffs also weighed on earnings.

Forecast Lowered
“We are therefore lowering the upper end of our EBITDA forecast (that is, operating profit, ed.) from 1.85 to 1.7 billion euros,” the CEO explained. Thanks to its “robust corporate strategy” and “strong financial foundation,” the Group nevertheless remains optimistic about the future. “Consequently, the lower end of the outlook remains unchanged at 1.6 billion euros,” said Eibensteiner. This corresponds to an expected operating profit (EBIT) in the range of 830 to 930 million euros. In the just-concluded 2025/26 fiscal year, the company generated earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization (EBITDA) of 1.5 billion euros and earnings before interest and taxes (EBIT) of 724 million euros.

1,000 Fewer Jobs
The workforce was reduced by 2 percent in the first half of the fiscal year to 48,619 full-time equivalents worldwide—resulting in the loss of just under 1,000 jobs. Just this week, it was announced that at the Kindberg site in Styria, where seamless pipes for the oil and gas industry are manufactured, an additional 150 production employees will lose their jobs by March 2027. The workforce there currently numbers around 950 employees. A year ago, that number was 1,070.

In the first half of the year, the Group consistently continued the reorganization of those business units facing structural changes. Specifically, according to the information provided, this primarily involves the Automotive Components division, with the goal of securing the automotive supply business of the Metal Forming Division in the long term. Second, the High Performance Metals Division is being restructured to focus its product portfolio on high-performance materials. These measures are now nearly complete and are increasingly showing positive effects.

Green steel production to begin in 2027
The transition to more climate-friendly steel production as part of the greentec steel transformation program is underway. In the first half of 2027, as a first step, the electric arc furnaces (EAFs) in Linz and Donawitz are scheduled to go into operation and replace the blast furnaces. Both projects are on schedule and within budget.