Steel Products
ThyssenKrupp to Cut 2000 Jobs in Europe
Written by Sandy Williams
February 11, 2013
Written by: Sandy Williams
ThyssenKrupp announced it will reduce its European workforce by 2000 employees with a possible 1800 dismissals to follow. The reduction is part of its “Best in Class—reloaded” (BiC) optimization program aimed at saving $670 million by the next fiscal year and improving competitiveness in the European market.
The program includes restructuring that will require closing, relocating, or selling some facilities in Europe. Among those on the potential chopping block are coil coating line 1 in Duisburg-Beeckerwerth, one of the two electrolytic coating lines at the Dortmund plant, the cold-rolling and coating plant in Neuwied, the grain-oriented electrical steel products of ThyssenKrupp Electrical Steel, and the hot-dip galvanizing line of ThyssenKrupp Galmed in Spain.
ThyssenKrupp said the European steel climate is worsening due to economic uncertainty and low consumption. In addition, the industry is facing high raw material and energy prices, CO2 allowance trading and increased competition from the Russian accession the World Trade Organization
ThyssenKrupp has suffered major blows to its finances and image over the last few years. The company EBIT was a negative $5.95 billion at the end of the fourth quarter 2012. The corporation streamlining hopes to generate EBIT of €2 billion ($2.7 billion) over the next three years.
“The ‘BiC-reloaded’ optimization program is a forceful initial step towards improving the position of the ThyssenKrupp Group’s European steel operations in a difficult market environment and achieving the profitability and capital efficiency required of all the Group’s business operations under the Strategic Way Forward,” said ThyssenKrupp in its press release.
Sandy Williams
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