What’s happened.
Canada’s steel industry was hit first and hardest when the US raised tariffs on imported steel from 25 per cent to 50 per cent in June 2025. Exports, about 90 per cent of which used to go south, fell 60 per cent in 2025, according to the Canadian Steel Producers Association, and hundreds of steelworkers lost their jobs. But the industry has started to turn. The share of steel used in Canada that was made in Canada rose to 51 per cent in 2025 from 41 per cent in 2024, with imports falling from 59 per cent to 49 per cent, on numbers calculated by the United Steelworkers union. Demand is coming from mining, energy and artificial intelligence data centre projects, and the strongest signs are in Western Canada, including a 1.2 gigawatt data centre under construction in Saskatchewan. The OECD estimates Canadian steel demand grew about 2.7 per cent in 2025 and will add about 0.9 per cent in 2026 (Pipeline & Gas Journal).
Government money and rules are doing a lot of the lifting. In May, Ottawa announced C$1 billion (about US$700 million) in loans to steel, aluminum and copper producers to cover day-to-day costs through the tariff hit, and extended the tariff rate quota — the cap on how much foreign steel can enter before extra duties apply — to curb cheap imports. The finance ministry pointed to its Buy Canadian policy, which steers infrastructure spending toward Canadian steel, as the engine behind the domestic demand cycle. Producers are following the money: Tenaris invested C$306 million to expand production at Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario for Canadian oil and gas customers, and Algoma, the largest Canadian producer, has pivoted to what CEO Rajat Marwah calls a “Canada-centric, plate-first strategy” aimed at infrastructure, construction and defence. David Fritz of Alberta-based Supreme Steel said more Canadian companies are now competing for the domestic market, leaving “less space for steelmakers from outside,” and that there are “enough projects in pipeline to support this industry.”
What it means for your business.
If you fabricate structural steel, plate work, pressure vessels or pipe in Western Canada, your Canadian supply chain has stopped being a cost line and become a selling point. Buy Canadian purchasing rules mean the owner or engineer reviewing your bid often has to show domestic content, so document the mill and country of origin for your steel and put it in the proposal rather than leaving it in the file. At the same time, build your quotes around domestic plate and structural supply instead of US-sourced material, because tariffs at 50 per cent and the import quota are shaping prices for the foreseeable future, not for one quarter. Aim your business development at mining, pipeline and data centre projects, where the volume is actually landing.
Next step: Add a documented Canadian-content and mill-origin statement to every infrastructure, mining and data centre bid you submit this quarter.
Explore this opportunity for your businessSources & context.
Reported developments are separated from MKTGSpace’s suggested commercial next steps. Reconfirm current conditions before acting.
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