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ThyssenKrupp Stahl to Restructure Electrical Steel Activities

April 5, 2004 — The European market for electrical steel is dominated by the euro/US$ exchange rate and overcapacities, particularly for grain-oriented material. ThyssenKrupp Steel is responding to this situation by restructuring its electrical steel unit, which currently has around 3,200 employees and sales of over 650 million euros. Changes will be effective June 1, 2004.

As part of its restructuring, ThyssenKrupp will separate its grain-oriented (GO) and non-oriented (NO) operations. The NO activities, which are concentrated in Bochum, Germany, Nashik, India, and the Motta Visconti service center in Italy and generate sales of approximately 400 million euros, will be allocated to ThyssenKrupp Stahl AG. This measure will help reduce complex processes, optimize the production program at ThyssenKrupp Stahl and thus achieve significant synergy effects.

For the GO sector, the present ThyssenKrupp Electrical Steel GmbH will transfer its central function to the Gelsenkirchen plant and from there act as the parent firm for the two plants in Gelsenkirchen, Germany, and Isbergues, France. With regard to the Terni, Italy plant, an industrial plan is currently being developed that provides for reintegration of electrical steel into the specialty steel production of AST.

ThyssenKrupp also announced that Clemens Iller takes over from Karl-Heinz Grzenia as head of grain-oriented sales at ThyssenKrupp Electrical Steel GmbH, effective April 1, 2004. Iller was previously responsible for worldwide plate sales at the Heavy Plate Profit Center of ThyssenKrupp Stahl AG. Karl-Heinz Grzenia will remain with the company in an advisory role. Additionally, Dr. Carl-Dieter Wuppermann, previously head of operations at ThyssenKrupp Electrical Steel, left the management board on March 31, 2004. His duties have been taken on by Dr. Wolfgang Trommer, Chairman of the Management Board.

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