voestalpine prepares support plan for 150 Kindberg job cuts

voestalpine plans to cut 150 jobs at its Kindberg operation by the end of March, with a support plan for affected workers expected by the end of November, ORF reported Wednesday.

The announced cuts have drawn renewed attention after the steel and technology group reported a sharply higher profit of 290 million euros for the first half of its 2026/27 financial year. The company said one-off effects contributed to the result.

Chief Executive Herbert Eibensteiner said the Kindberg job cuts were a direct result of US tariffs. “With these tariffs, it will not be economically possible for us to continue supplying there,” he said.

The company and its works council began drawing up a support plan on Wednesday. Regional economic councillor Willibald Ehrenhöfer said workers could have access to employment foundation programmes to help with short-term unemployment, as well as opportunities to find other jobs within voestalpine.

Ehrenhöfer said he did not blame the company, which he described as a leading industrial operation and said had invested billions of euros at its Leoben site. He added that regional politicians could not influence such an international decision.