Ex-Ilva, another 150 million on the way for the rescue

More liquidity is on the way for Acciaierie d’Italia in extraordinary administration. At the meeting on 29 April at Palazzo Chigi with the trade unions and the two commissioners (AdI and Ilva), the Government, through the Minister of Business, Adolfo Urso, announced a rule shortly – it should be a law decree and an attempt would be made to bring it forward to tomorrow – which will bring further resources to AdI.

This is 150 million in addition to the other 150 already made available to the AdI commissioners by Ilva under extraordinary administration. These are funds that the company needs to survive, explained one of AdI’s commissioners, Giancarlo Quaranta, while waiting for the 320 million bridge loan to be released, for which the green light from the European Union is awaited. However, the 320 million remain the most important gift and if they do not arrive within a month and a half, warned another AdI commissioner, Giovanni Fiori, “we will close”.

In essence, by adding the three financial contributions (the 150 from Ilva in as, the other 150 announced by the Government and the 320 from the loan) Acciaierie should be able to count on a ceiling of 620 million which will be used to restore the functionality of the company. 80% of the interventions must be carried out in the Taranto plant and Urso noted that a serious plant situation was found far beyond what was expected. The company, said the minister, was taken by the hair, when the commissioners arrived there was supply for a few more days and if blast furnace 4, the only one currently in operation, had also stopped, we would have put the final word.

To the Fim, Fiom, Uilm, Usb and Ugl unions, the commissioners and the Government presented the new industrial plan which sets the objective of 6 million tonnes at most by 2026 and indicated the start of of the construction of the two electric furnaces which will come into operation in the second half of 2027. The electric furnaces will replace blast furnaces 1 and 4.

In the coming weeks, meanwhile, representatives of the groups that have expressed interest in the acquisition will visit the former Ilva plants. For Fiori, the extraordinary administration has a single and clear objective: to find a new entrepreneur, better than the previous one (ArcelorMittal) and to find him in the shortest time possible. When the new entrepreneur arrives, said Fiori, according to what sources participating in the table report, he will have his industrial plan, but in the meantime we will predict it.