Strategic direction

Advanced steel grades

SSAB has a wide range of advanced steel grades and is the global market leader in quenched and tempered (Q&T) steels and advanced high-strength steels (AHSS). These steels create great value for SSAB's customers, for example through longer product lifespan, lighter and more energy-efficient products, and higher productivity. SSAB’s unique products have higher margins and more stable earnings than standard steel over business cycles. The strategy is to continue to increase sales of advanced steels by upgrading customers from standard steels to high-strength alternatives, and to enter new markets and segments.

Value-add services & solutions

SSAB also has a presence downstream in the steel value chain through our value-add services and solutions, thereby generating significant value for customers. Value-added steels improve SSAB’s profitability per tonne, and a local presence and customization enable us to serve the local market directly (and not via service centers). Value-add services and solutions are also at the core of our subsidiaries Tibnor and Ruukki Construction, which process steels into semi-finished and finished products to increase customer value. The services and solutions offered by Tibnor and Ruukki Construction are an enabler for our home market position in the Nordics.

Decarbonized steels

Many of SSAB's customers and other market actors, particularly in the mobility, construction and construction machinery industries, have set ambitious goals to reduce their climate impact from the materials they use. In many cases, steel accounts for a significant share of the CO₂ emissions related to materials and the manufacturing of these products. Decarbonized steels with lower climate impact create significant customer value and add a further dimension to SSAB’s range of premium offerings. Back in 2023, we introduced a unique decarbonized steel at a commercial scale, SSAB Zero, based on recycled steel scrap and fossil-free energy. In September 2025, SSAB was the first company in the world to produce steel that meets the International Energy Agency’s threshold for near-zero emission steel.

Operational strategy

Safety is one of SSAB’s focus areas, where we are continuing towards the ambition to become the safest steel company. Over the past 10 years, SSAB’s Lost time incident frequency (LTIF) has decreased by more than 90% to an exceptionally low level, and is currently less than 1 per million hours worked.

The sequential transformation of our Nordic assets is an enabler of our commercial agenda as well, helping us deliver on the goal towards increased production flexibility, reduced fixed costs, and a significant reduction in CO₂ emissions.

SSAB's People Strategy is to have a high-performing organization during times of change and transformation. The overall ambition is to attract, develop and retain the right people with the right skills, which is achieved through work across three pillars: Having strong leaders in place, focusing on competence development, and fostering an inclusive corporate culture that drives engagement and performance.