ArcelorMittal, Europe’s biggest steel producer, said on 5 November 2026 that its electric arc furnace programme in Spain and France remained on track to add approximately 3.9 million tonnes of incremental steelmaking capacity by 2029. The projects are in Gijón and Sestao in Spain and Dunkirk in France, expanding the region’s electric-steelmaking base as European producers face pressure from energy and carbon costs.
At Gijón, a 1.1-million-tonne long-products furnace was scheduled for commissioning in the final quarter of 2026, with production ramp-up continuing through 2027. Sestao’s 1.6-million-tonne expansion was also scheduled for commissioning in the final quarter of 2026, followed by ramp-up through 2027.
The 2-million-tonne flat-products furnace at Dunkirk has entered execution. The company’s approximately 3.9 million tonnes of incremental capacity is not the simple sum of the projects’ nominal capacities: existing production arrangements and replacement capacity affect the calculation. The new volumes should not be counted as fully operational until commissioning is complete and production is stable.
Energy costs and utilisation remain key
Electric arc furnaces melt scrap and, where necessary, other metallic inputs using electricity, rather than relying primarily on conventional blast-furnace ironmaking. Their emissions depend on scrap availability, the source of electricity and the upstream production of iron-bearing feedstock.
ArcelorMittal said higher European electricity and carbon costs weighed on its third-quarter earnings, while steel selling prices had not yet fully reflected those increases. Adjusted operating earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation were approximately €1.80 billion, up from a year earlier but slightly below the previous quarter.
The company said the European Union’s recent trade measures were beginning to reduce import penetration and support domestic capacity use. European flat-steel shipments rose sequentially despite what would normally be a seasonal slowdown, and ArcelorMittal expected further increases in the final quarter.
Competitively priced power, suitable scrap, grid connections and flexible production arrangements are increasingly important to utilisation and margins as European steelmakers shift to electric furnaces. Trade and other industrial-policy measures may improve the commercial environment but do not guarantee returns on individual projects; electricity contracts, carbon regulation, imported steel competition and scrap prices will remain relevant to competitiveness.
Gijón and Sestao face near-term commissioning and ramp-up risks, while Dunkirk must progress through execution before contributing its planned volumes. The investments’ longer-term significance will depend on producers making steel reliably at costs industrial customers can sustain.
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