The Wallenberg consortium is close to a solution to save the steel company Stegra, according to sources cited by Dagens Industri. Ailing Swedish startup Stegra AB has secured funding commitments from the influential Wallenberg family in a rescue package, Dagens Industri reported. The rescue package will help Stegra complete the world's biggest green-steel plant and ensure it stays in business, according to the same report. The Wallenberg family and Kamprad family are rescuing the crisis-ridden steel company Stegra, dramatically reducing the risk of a crash, multiple major media outlets have reported.
Stegra has secured an investment of 15 billion SEK to complete the steel plant. The new agreement means 15 billion SEK is added and the crisis is over for now, according to major media reports. Stegra will now have access to around 25 billion SEK to invest in the continued construction of the mammoth facility, located in Boden, Sweden, the newspaper said. The upcoming financing of 1.4 billion euros will be used to complete the construction of the facility in Boden, according to official sources.
A group of investors led by the Wallenbergs are committing 7 billion SEK to 8 billion SEK of a total 15 billion SEK in fresh funding, Dagens Industri said on Sunday, citing sources it didn't identify. The money comes from Wallenberg Investments, Temasek, and IMAS, which is linked to IKEA founder Ingvar Kamprad, according to major media reports. Other investors include Altor, Hy24, and Just Climate, the latter founded by Al Gore, multiple major media outlets have reported. Wallenberg contributes 2.7 billion SEK of the new capital, according to major media reports.
Founder Harald Mix is being pushed out and will remain only as a minor owner, according to major media reports. Old owners' shares will be diluted, affecting their influence, multiple major media outlets have reported. Leif Johansson is nominated as chairman and Håkan Buskhe as board member after the financing is completed, according to major media reports.
The company previously faced economic problems, construction stops, and crisis meetings with lenders, according to official sources. Stegra had invested 45 billion SEK but only had a half-finished factory and ran out of money, multiple major media outlets have reported. In February, it emerged that Stegra owed contractors hundreds of millions SEK in unpaid invoices, and construction in Boden was paused, according to major media reports.
Despite 70 billion SEK pumped into the planned green steel plant, the money ran out, according to major media reports. The capital need to complete the steel plant construction was stated as 10 billion SEK, but according to information to Dagens industri, it has increased to 20 billion SEK. In October, Stegra said it was seeking up to €975 million in new financing to cover higher-than-expected project costs, fund infrastructure and fill a gap left by delays to state grant support.
Stegra has been in a financing process since last year, according to official sources. Stegra raised about €6.5 billion ($7.6 billion) in a mix of debt, equity and public grants in the years leading up to the cash crunch, according to research sources. Stegra's lenders aren't committing any fresh funds, but will permit the company to draw from about 10 billion SEK in pre-committed loans, money that had been frozen since the beginning of the year, Dagens Industri said.
The financing package should be ready before the end of the first quarter, i.e., March 31, according to official sources. Stegra's financing is delayed by 1-2 weeks beyond the March 31 deadline, according to major media reports. The 15 billion SEK is expected to be in place by June, according to major media reports. Agreements are expected to be signed in late April and implementation in June 2026, according to major media reports.
The deal caps months of fraught negotiations with shareholders and lenders, according to research sources. At the turn of the month, that deadline expired, and it then appeared that a conflict was ongoing regarding board seats, according to Dagens Industri. Now those knots are also said to have been resolved.
The loan debt has increased by 280 million SEK compared to 2024, bringing the total debt to 1,790 million SEK, according to official sources. Investment company Kinnevik wrote down the value of its Stegra holding by 49%, from 1.3 billion to about 650 million SEK, according to major media reports. The transaction has support from Stegra's lenders subject to credit approvals, according to major media reports.
The news has been met with hopefulness by Boden residents interviewed by SVT Norrbotten, according to official sources. With Stegra's establishment in Boden, the municipality has made massive investments in its infrastructure, according to official sources. Parties that Dagens Industri has spoken with are breathing a sigh of relief.
Low prices on emission allowances could create future challenges for Stegra despite the extensive financing, according to Ekot's economic commentator. Sweden's Energy Agency said it would award Stegra 390 million SEK in public grant money, provided it could secure enough funds by spring of 2026 to complete the project. Several minority shareholders, including Hitachi Energy, earlier told Bloomberg that they wouldn't commit fresh funds to the project.
Stegra is one of several new steelmakers seeking to remodel one of the most polluting industries in the world, and is seen as a bellwether for the sector's green transition, according to research sources.
It remains unclear whether the 15 billion SEK investment covers the full capital need or if additional funding is required beyond the reported 20 billion SEK. The exact timeline for when the financing will be finalized and when construction will fully resume also contains uncertainties due to conflicting reports about implementation dates. The specific terms of the ownership restructuring, including the exact stakes of new and old owners after the deal, have not been fully disclosed. Questions persist about the impact of the rescue on Stegra's existing debt and how it will be managed moving forward. The role and future involvement of founder Harald Mix, beyond being a minor owner, also remains to be clarified.