Fuat Tosyali presses Brussels to list steel import quotas

Fuat Tosyali, the Turkish steel magnate behind Tosyalı Holding, has urged the European Union to lift steel import quotas on Turkey and Algeria, arguing the bloc is penalising countries that can supply low emission steel at a time when Europe needs it most.

Speaking on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum in Davos this week, Tosyali said measures aimed at curbing Asian supply, particularly China, are being applied too broadly and are catching upstream producers in the net. In his view, that is not just unfair, it is self defeating for European manufacturers that rely on imported feedstock.

The intervention lands as Brussels weighs a tougher steel defence regime that would shrink tariff free quota volumes and raise the penalty on volumes above those limits. Under the European Commission proposal unveiled in October, the overall tariff free volume would fall by about 47 per cent, from roughly 33 million tonnes to about 18 million tonnes, while the tariff on imports above quota would double from 25 per cent to 50 per cent. The measures are expected to start on July 1, 2026, and run to 2031 if approved.

Tosyali’s pitch is that Europe should draw a sharper line between what it is trying to stop and what it should encourage. He argues Turkey has the capacity to produce lower emission steel products that can support Europe’s downstream industries, and that restricting such supply risks pushing European processors into higher cost inputs or supply gaps.

His message also leans into a growing theme in steel politics: climate policy is becoming trade policy. With carbon border rules and disclosure demands rising, producers are repositioning themselves as part of Europe’s green transition, not a threat to it. Tosyali says governments should stop backing outdated, high emission facilities, and he frames quota relief for lower emission producers as consistent with Europe’s own climate ambitions.

Behind the policy argument sits a commercial one. Tosyalı Holding is Turkey’s largest steel producer and is ranked among the world’s top 50 steel companies, according to reporting carried by Turkish media. Tosyali says the group set records in production and exports in 2025, despite rising trade restrictions globally, and he expects the business to climb further in global rankings as investments come on stream.

He also points to an industry imbalance that has driven governments toward defensive measures in the first place. China accounts for about half of global steel production, and the combination of chronic overcapacity, subsidised supply and weaker demand has deepened trade tensions. Tosyali has warned global excess capacity could reach as high as 720 million tonnes by 2027.

Europe’s challenge is that safeguards can shield local mills while simultaneously squeezing manufacturers that buy steel as an input. That tension has intensified as European industry fights high energy costs, uneven demand and the capital burden of decarbonising production. The Commission’s plan would also tighten compliance, including restrictions on rolling unused quotas forward and additional origin declarations, changes that importers say could add friction even for legitimate supply.

Tosyali used the Davos platform to widen the lens, arguing that Turkey’s domestic economic program has improved predictability for business and that easing inflation pressures are starting to show. He presented that as part of the case for treating Turkey as a stable industrial partner rather than a quota target.