A 500-Year heritage, a 20-year milestone
A point of pride for us is that we claim both a 20-year history – and a 500-year legacy.
The Ovako we know today was formally established in May 2005, through a merger designed to consolidate long steel production expertise in the Nordic region. But the sites and skills that are our foundation have existed for much, much longer.
Iron production began in Hofors in 1549. Hällefors followed in the early 1600s, and Boxholm in the mid-1700s. Smedjebacken’s rolling mill was founded in 1856, and steelmaking in Imatra started in 1915. Over the 20th century, these sites evolved independently of each other, supplying premium steels for applications across Europe.
More than the sum of our parts
The main aim of our merger was to bring together specific, complementary strengths in steel production.
Imatra Steel (Finland), Ovako Steel (Sweden), and Fundia’s special bar business (originally part of Rautaruukki) joined forces under joint ownership by Wärtsilä, SKF, and Rautaruukki.
Our driving vision? To consolidate manufacturing, reduce duplication, and build a Nordic powerhouse for high-performance products. We started seeing the benefits almost immediately.
For example, bearing steel production was introduced to Imatra for the first time, via investment in continuous casting and heat treatment routes. And flat bar production was centralised in Smedjebacken, enhancing efficiency.
That’s just a small snapshot of how we started to ramp up offering to provide our customers with steel products that are fit-for-purpose, even for the most demanding applications.
Ownership and investment
Following our formation, we went through a number of ownership transitions that re-shaped our strategic direction.
In 2006, the company was acquired by the German investment group Pampus Stahlbeteiligungs. Then, in 2010, private equity firm Triton took over. This was an important time that saw sustained reinvestment in production technology, including vacuum degassing, new casting equipment, and expansions in processing capacity across multiple sites.
In 2018, our next major transformation arrived when we were acquired by Nippon Steel Corporation. That led directly to its operations being integrated into Sanyo Special Steel – a division of the Nippon Steel Group that’s a global leader in specialty steel.
That most recent change brought not only financial stability, but also long-term thinking and access to global R&D resources. Partnering with Japanese engineers has helped fine-tune our processes, while still allowing us to maintain our Northern European identity.
Product advancement and steel expertise
One area where we continue to make our mark is in the development of advanced steel grades.
Since the 2000s, we’ve launched innovations like IQ-Steel (ultra-clean for demanding applications), and BQ-Steel (for bearing-grade applications). We are also especially proud that in 2017 we brought to market Hybrid Steel, a new family of steel grades that combines the properties of maraging steel, stainless steel, tool steel and lower alloy engineering steel. These reflect our ability to develop a portfolio of products tailored specifically to our customers’ evolving needs.
More than half of our production today consists of further-processed steel – whether heat-treated, peeled, turned, or rolled into more specialised components. That reflects the successful shift we’ve made, from traditional steelmaker to a provider of high-value-added products.
Sustainability as a strategy
Perhaps one of our most defining achievements of the past 20 years has been our pioneering, proactive stance on sustainability. We began using electric arc furnace (EAF) steel production decades ago, using recycled scrap as a raw material – which gives us one of the lowest carbon footprints in the steel sector.
From 2015, sustainability became an even more integral part of our overall corporate strategy. The switch to fossil-free electricity was completed at all our Swedish sites by 2017, followed by Imatra in 2018. Where oil had once been used in mills, natural gas or propane are now employed, and we began offsetting any remaining Scope 1 and 2 emissions in 2022.
In 2020, we made a name for ourselves globally by becoming the world’s first steel company to heat steel with hydrogen: a game-changing development. Full-scale hydrogen heating operations are now underway in Hofors.
All of that is summed up in our promise: to be the trusted engineering steel partner for decarbonising industries.
We also see ourselves as the industry leaders in climate transparency, having introduced verified carbon declarations and climate surcharges based on actual emissions data. This allows customers to better track and cut the embedded emissions in their supply chains.
Embracing digitalisation and transparency
Beyond metallurgy and emissions, our journey over the past twenty years has also embraced digital transformation. Tools like Steel Navigator and the Machining Cost Calculator were launched to support customers with data-driven decision-making.
Internally, we’ve strengthened traceability across our supply chain, helping customers understand product origin, carbon footprint and technical properties – from furnace to final delivery.
A culture that continues to this day
Despite changing structures and new technologies, our cultural DNA has remained constant. Employees across all our sites often describe Ovako as a company where individuals – especially engineers – can make an impact quickly. With an exceptionally collaborative atmosphere, we retain a level of agility rare in the steel sector.
Twenty years on, we continue building on our rich heritage in order to deliver a better future.
