Commissioner Wopke Hoekstra, in a written answer on 22 June 2026, outlined the EU's existing and planned measures to support the coking sector, which faces financial strain from regulatory costs and cheap imports. The answer, responding to a question from ECR MEP Jadwiga Wiśniewska, signals that the Commission views coking coal as strategically important but stops short of immediate new relief for producers like Jastrzębska Spółka Węglowa Koks S.A., the EU's largest coke producer.
Hoekstra noted that coking coal is already listed as a critical raw material under the Critical Raw Materials Act, triggering provisions on spatial planning and exploration. He also highlighted the recently proposed Industrial Accelerator Act, which aims to boost industrial capacities and decarbonisation in strategic sectors including iron and steel. On the EU Emissions Trading System (ETS), Hoekstra stated that top-performing coking plants still receive sufficient free allowances, and that the upcoming ETS Directive review will examine free allocation rules to support decarbonisation investments. Regarding import competition, he said the Commission would act on complaints of dumped or subsidised imports, directing the company to the Trade Defence Services office. The answer provides no concrete timeline for the ETS review or specific trade measures, instead reiterating existing frameworks and procedural avenues.