Sidenor 2022 Sustainability Report

Sustainability Report 2022 | About us Visible results 2022 2022 was once more a year full of challenges for the automotive industry in Europe, which gradually regained the pace lost due to the lack of semiconductors in practically all OEMs (Original Equipment Manufacturers) in 2021. This gradual recovery of the market, together with the finalization of the second investment process phase in Basauri and the restructuring of our production facilities, has allowed Sidenor to again demonstrate its flexibility in a very agitated sector which requires fast answers as well as a flexible and quality service. The finalization of our investment process together with our commitment to innovation in all Company activities allow us to face with optimism the changes expected in our sector, which mainly derive from the electrification process expected in the coming years in the automotive sector and mobility in general. In this respect, Sidenor continues to focus its activities on the priority positioning of the Company regarding the new components resulting from the electrification expected in the short and medium term, as well as on the diversification of activities compared with traditional sectors linked to the internal combustion engine industry. Moreover, Sidenor’s firm commitment to accelerating its neutrality process thanks to emission results that are far below the sector average, together with its green steel offer which guarantees zero CO 2 emissions, positions us as an outstanding leader in our sector in terms of environmental requirements, which are already (and this aspect will intensify in the future) key factors in the definition of our customers’ purchase strategies. Within the framework of our innovation project, we pursue our diversification strategy both in the steel operating business and on the corporate side. In the activity related to steel, the long-term strategy is to diversify more outside the car sector, in order to offset the progress of electric cars, while becoming leaders in terms of quality, costs and service in the car sector. We have already been following this path for five years and continue to advance with new products, approvals and, above all, changes in our usual way of working. The sectors in which we are already present include energy generation (both wind energy and oil&gas), railway, mining, defense, tool machinery, etc. In order to access these sectors, we had to perform relevant investments, such as the manufacturing of continuous casting round bloom formats of 410 millimeters 525 millimeters and 600 millimeters in diameter. In this respect, the support of our Sidenor R&D center, which developed ad hoc steel qualities to cover and even exceed new needs, has been instrumental. We are currently analyzing further markets for Sidenor, such as the maritime sector, the manufacture of lifts, forklift trucks, rail manufacturers, etc. We are studying the development of new products such as rolled round bars that are of higher quality than the current range, new continuous casting bloom sections and more demanding steel qualities, both in special steel and stainless as well as tool steel. In addition, we have launched a corporate diversification process, including alliance and purchase processes with other companies searching for synergies with our business. We further pursue our diversification strategy 26