Active risk management, as it is understood and regularly applied in the voestalpine Group, serves to secure the long-term existence of the company as well as to increase its value and thus represents a key success factor. In the course of the systematic risk management process, which is run through several times a year and uniformly throughout the Group, and within the framework of internal control systems, which are also integral parts of the organizational and operational structure, significant risks are systematically recorded, analyzed, and evaluated at an early stage. Permanent risk monitoring ensures that appropriate risk minimizing measures can be taken in a timely manner. In the interests of sustainable, responsible, and value-oriented corporate management, risk management is an integral part of decision making and business processes in all areas of the Group and at all hierarchical levels, and also includes the responsible use of resources and the environment, as well as compliance with regulatory requirements. Risk management extends to both the strategic and the operational level and is a key element for sustainable business success.
The operational risk environment of the voestalpine Group (such as failure of critical production facilities and critical IT systems, decarbonization and the CO2 issue, the availability of raw materials and energy supplies, knowledge management, the effects of geopolitical conflicts, and any financial risks) remained virtually unchanged in the first six months of the current business year and also in comparison with the previous year. The main risk areas and their risk-minimizing measures, which are presented and described in detail in the Annual Report 2023/24 of the voestalpine Group (Annual Report 2023/24—“Report on the company’s risk exposure”), thus remain valid as of the half-year management report.
Based on the findings from economic and financial crises in the past and their effects on the voestalpine Group and, in particular, from crises in the recent past, additional—primarily entrepreneurial—measures to minimize risks have been implemented in recent years, which are also described in detail in the Annual Report 2023/24 and have been, and will continue to be, consistently pursued in the current business year.
In an economic environment that remains to be extremely difficult, structural changes and any consequences of global (trade) conflicts and the effects of changes in geopolitical conditions are constantly monitored and evaluated and risk-minimizing measures are derived.
Specific hedging measures have been developed and implemented for the risks identified in the past in the voestalpine Group. These measures are aimed at reducing the potential amount of damage and/or the probability of occurrence. It should be noted that, also as of the half-year management report, the operating risks of the voestalpine Group—apart from global crises and their effects—are limited and manageable from today’s perspective and do not jeopardize the continued existence of the company.