The market for electrical steel has changed dramatically in recent years and in Europe is dominated by the euro/US$ exchange rate and by overcapacities, particularly for grain-oriented material. ThyssenKrupp Steel is gearing itself to this situation and effective June 1, 2004 will be restructuring its electrical steel unit, which currently has around 3,200 employees and sales of over 650 million euros.

The grain-oriented (GO) and non-oriented (NO) operations will be separated. 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 which among other things provides for the reintegration of electrical steel into the specialty steel production of AST.

Personnel matters

Effective April 1, 2004 Clemens Iller takes over from Karl-Heinz Grzenia as head of grain-oriented sales at ThyssenKrupp Electrical Steel GmbH. 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. 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.

Contact:

ThyssenKrupp Steel
Erwin Schneider
Phone: +49 203 / 52 - 2 56 90
Fax: +49 203 / 52 - 2 57 07
e-mail: erwin.schneider@tks.thyssenkrupp.com

Dietmar Stamm
Phone: +49 203 / 52 - 2 62 67
Fax: +49 203 / 52 - 2 57 07
e-mail: dietmar.stamm@tks.thyssenkrupp.com