Steel company Stegra, building a fossil-free steel plant in Boden, announced on October 20, 2025, that founder Harald Mix is stepping down as board chairman. Mix remains a board member while Shaun Kingsbury takes over the role. The news comes amid a financial crisis where the company needs 10 billion kronor in new capital.
Stegra, a project for fossil-free steel in Boden, faces major challenges. The company announced on October 16, 2025, that it needs 10 billion kronor in new capital to continue building the steel plant. Production start has been delayed to 2026 or the turn of 2026/2027 due to rising costs, delayed state grants, and logistical issues, including sourcing iron ore from Brazil and Canada instead of LKAB.
On October 20, news of board changes emerged. Harald Mix, co-founder and largest owner via Vargas (22.3 percent), is leaving the chairman position after five years but remains an active board member. New chairman is Shaun Kingsbury, investment chief at Al Gore's climate fund Just Climate, which owns 8 percent and pledged more capital. Two members, Annica Bresky (former CEO Stora Enso) and Susanna Campbell (former CEO Ratos), are leaving entirely. They are replaced by Aidan de Brunner, an expert in crisis companies, and Emmanuel Rodriguez with steel industry experience.
Mix comments: 'My confidence in the company is unwavering and I will continue to support the company financially as an investor and in my work as an active board member.' He adds that Stegra has secured over 100 billion kronor in binding customer contracts from more than 50 companies, despite challenges like inflation and insourcing infrastructure. Kingsbury says: 'I want to thank our co-founder Harald Mix for his leadership as chairman over the past five years. I look forward to continuing our close collaboration.'
Financially, Stegra has attracted over 70 billion kronor so far, including 46 billion in loans of which 13.5 billion are state-guaranteed. Financial Times reports the company burns three billion kronor per month and risks an empty cash reserve within two months, with Citigroup refusing to lend. The company denies an acute situation. Investors like AMF Pension (1.95 billion invested) and Altor (14.7 percent) are participating in the capital round, but Kinnevik (3.6 percent) hesitates. Parallels to Northvolt, where Mix was co-founder, are drawn, with risks to pension savers.