BENTELER on track with solid financial year in 2024 despite challenging market conditions

Salzburg, March 12, 2025. Despite declining markets in the automotive and steel tube industries, the BENTELER Group achieved a solid business result in 2024. The company generated revenue of €8.2 billion in the 2024 financial year (previous year: €8.8 billion). The operating result adjusted for special effects (adjusted EBITDA) amounted to €594 million (previous year: €793 million). Efficiency improvements and strategic progress in all areas of the company helped to cushion declines in the automotive and steel tube markets. 

The Group’s largest division, BENTELER Automotive Components, increased its adjusted EBITDA by €27 million to €365 million despite lower volumes. BENTELER’s module business maintained the high level of the previous year with an adjusted EBITDA of €107 million (previous year: €111 million). In contrast, the BENTELER Steel/Tube division recorded significant declines in revenue and earnings compared to the previous year due to a sharp fall in volumes and prices. 

Ralf Göttel, CEO of the BENTELER Group, summarized: “The fundamental conditions for industry in Europe, especially in Germany, are challenging. We have not been immune to this trend. At the same time, our solid annual figures show that we know how to deal with conditions of this kind. The past year has once again shown that we are well positioned in terms of organization and strategy. 2024 was hard work for BENTELER, but no drama. Despite all the negative news surrounding us, our results speak for themselves.”

Profitable business in difficult markets

Global vehicle production fell by around one million vehicles in 2024 (source: S&P Global Mobility Forecast 02-2025) – the first decline since the post-COVID recovery. The difficult conditions in the steel tube sector led to market-driven declines in volume and lower price levels in the European and North American markets. Nevertheless, BENTELER remained profitable in all business areas. 

Tobias Braun, CFO of the BENTELER Group, stated: “After two record years in a row, we were unable to maintain the level in 2024 due to market conditions. Nevertheless, this was still the third best year in BENTELER’s history, despite significant headwinds in our industry. This underscores the high level of profitability we have achieved through our consistent transformation in recent years. In 2024, we focused not only on maintaining value but also continued to pursue strategic initiatives and invest in growth markets and future-oriented topics.”

Strategic successes across all business segments

In the USA, BENTELER is expanding its production capacities with a new site in the city of Wyoming and strengthened existing sites with investments in Spartanburg and Shreveport. In Asia, the company supported new players in the automotive industry with their market entries, including Xiaomi and Nio.

At the beginning of 2024, the BENTELER subsidiary HOLON secured a financially strong partner in TASARU Mobility Investments for the development and industrialization of autonomous vehicles. Additionally, plans for the first production site in Jacksonville, USA, were concretized and the first prototypes were successfully tested.

At the same time, BENTELER advanced the sustainable transformation of its industries, for example through new partnerships for BENTELER Steel/Tube’s CliMore® brand of sustainable steel tubes, as well as product innovations for e-mobility, including hot-formed battery trays and battery cooling plates. The company also significantly improved its key sustainability metrics. Production-related emissions (Scope 1 & Scope 2) fell by 26% compared to the previous year, while Scope 3 emissions were reduced by 7% and water withdrawals in water-stressed areas by 19%.

Outlook 2025

Continuous improvement in all areas of the company remains key to the global Group’s business success in the future. BENTELER CEO Ralf Göttel emphasized this: “The market environment will remain volatile in 2025. Nevertheless, I am confident that BENTELER has a broad and well-balanced portfolio, unique expertise, a pioneering spirit – and the know-how to act flexibly. I am convinced that the numerous initiatives we launched in 2024 and in previous years will continue to bear fruit.”