ArcelorMittal still falls short of real climate action — Q2 2025 earnings update confirms

The Hague, Friday August 1, 2025 – ArcelorMittal released its second quarter earnings [1] of 2025 yesterday, reporting sales of almost USD 16 billion — over a billion dollars higher than the previous quarter. ArcelorMittal has spent only around USD 100 million in the first half of 2025 from its planned annual decarbonisation envelope of USD 300-400 million, further underlining the gap between stated ambition and actual delivery[2]. The results confirm the company is delaying decisive climate action while presenting marginal steps as major progress. 

According to the latest release, the announcement of a EUR1.2 billion, 2 million-tonne electric arc furnace (EAF) in Dunkirk, France remains a declaration of intent — not a final investment decision, and not the comprehensive transformation needed to align with climate goals. This proposed investment is also conditional on “efficient trade measures replacing the current steel safeguards” and a “fully effective carbon border adjustment mechanism.” This effectively shifts responsibility onto policymakers, rather than demonstrating the proactive leadership expected from one of the world’s largest steel producers.

“Another potential EAF investment — without final investment, without clarity on where and how iron to feed EAF will be made, and without a credible timeline for phasing out dirty assets — does not represent a real shift. The steel industry urgently needs transformative change. ArcelorMittal has the scale and resources to lead the steel industry as a market-maker, but continues to stall — substituting delay tactics and conditional announcements for genuine delivery.” said Sam Daniel, Corporate Campaigner at SteelWatch.

The company’s assets are also growing. In Q2 2025, ArcelorMittal completed the acquisition of Nippon Steel’s 50% stake in AM/NS Calvert, gaining full control of one of North America’s most advanced steelmaking facilities. Behind the growing sales and assets lies a troubling pattern of strategic drift, climate backtracking, and a growing disconnect between profit and responsibility.

The company’s broader EAF strategy is also limited in scope. EAFs reduce direct emissions, but they must be paired with clean electricity and low-emissions iron — whether recycled scrap or direct reduced iron (DRI) made using green hydrogen — in order to deliver meaningful climate impact [3]. Today, ArcelorMittal still operates 87% of its ironmaking capacity with coal-based blast furnaces, while they have retreated from its plans for new DRI projects.  

ArcelorMittal’s lack of long-term strategic direction is hindering it from seizing opportunities to invest in green iron development. Canada, for example, with its high-grade ore and strong renewable energy potential, is emerging as a key global supplier of green iron and could provide the opportunity for an emerging value chain for ArcelorMittal [4].

“The latest release is part of a wider pattern of retreat. ArcelorMittal has been backtracking on its climate commitments for a while — in Germany, France and in other locations [5]. Over the last year, what has surprised many is not ArcelorMittal’s continued profitability, but its retreat from future-facing commitments back toward legacy, high-carbon blast furnaces. This is pushing the company further and further away from its previous decarbonisation targets,” Daniel concluded.

Contacts:

Gozde Incegul
Communications, SteelWatch (Turkey, CEST)
[email protected] 
(+90 537 583 5442)

Notes:

1. ArcelorMittal Q2 2025 Earnings Release https://corporate.arcelormittal.com/investors/results 
2. “Backtracking on Climate Action” – ArcelorMittal Corporate Climate Assessment 2025 Update https://steelwatch.org/reports/backtracking-on-climate-action-arcelormittal-corporate-climate-assessment-2025-update/ 
3. Commentary: “How much GHG emissions can be cut by new EAFs in steel production?” https://steelwatch.org/commentary/how-much-ghg-emissions-can-be-cut-by-new-eafs-in-steel-production/ 
4. Commentary: “It’s time for steelmakers to get serious about Canada’s green iron potential” https://steelwatch.org/commentary/its-time-for-steelmakers-to-get-serious-about-canadas-green-iron-potential/
5. In Germany, ArcelorMittal secured a EUR 1.3 billion direct grant from the federal government to support the decarbonisation of its Bremen and Eisenhüttenstadt plants — funding that was expected to deliver a DRI plant and three new EAFs producing 3.8 million tonnes of green steel annually from 2026. The company was contractually required to begin development by June 2025 but instead, announced it was abandoning the project. In France, the Chairman of ArcelorMittal France confirmed last week in theParliament that a EUR 850 million publicly backed DRI-EAF project in Dunkirk is now facing significant delays.

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