Overview
- Stichting Frisse Wind.nu served a writ of summons on December 19 against Tata Steel Nederland B.V. and Tata Steel IJmuiden B.V. in the District Court of North Holland in Haarlem under the WAMCA framework.
- The collective action seeks roughly €1.4 billion for alleged environmental harm, increased health risks and depressed property values for residents near the IJmuiden/Velsen-Noord operations.
- Tata Steel says it has not received the NGO’s exhibits, calls the assertions speculative and unsupported, and plans to challenge both admissibility and the merits.
- Under WAMCA, cases proceed in two stages—admissibility followed by merits—and each phase typically takes two to three years, making near-term compensation unlikely.
- The company points to ongoing measures, citing its Roadmap+ programme and a Green Steel Plan with the Dutch government to reduce emissions, particulate matter, noise and other impacts around IJmuiden.