Thursday 7th of November, finally, the CEO of Beko Europe Ragip Balcioglu, will reveal a Rome il business plan long-awaited, in the presence of the minister, the unions, the local authorities and Confindustria. This plan had been planned for months, but has always been postponed due to the difficulties of the European market, which has particularly affected the group's factories, now operating at only 40-50% of their capacity. The communication arrived shortly after theproject agreement signed from the social parties in Region Toscana, which, alone among the regions where the group has factories, has allocated one million euros for projects and training courses for the 300 employees of the Siena site. No rumors have filtered out from the Dutch headquarters of the company, even if, in recent statements, the top management has expressed great concern for the persistent crisis in consumption. After plant closures in Poland and the UK, no one is under any illusion that Beko will keep its promises to relaunch its factories and maintain jobs.
Sites at risk: Siena and Cassinetta in the crosshairs
La Siena freezer factory is that of refrigerators of Cassinetta are the main ones risk. “In Siena, with nine days of redundancy pay and four days of total closure of the plant, the 300 Sienese employees will work just one week – he states Daniela Miniero, of the Fiom Cgil general secretariat –. Production volumes have dropped from 424 thousand pieces in 2022 to 311 thousand in 2023, and the forecast for this year is 263 thousand pieces”, with an increasing loss of productivity. But even if nothing has leaked out about Beko Europe's industrial plan, it is known that they are planned new cuts e closures in Europe, with consequent movements of production, as already happened, towards the Turkey and the brand new factory opened in Egypt. It is therefore a question of relocationAccording to rumors gathered in Brussels, the company expects to find a climate of mutual collaboration, in the common interest, even if it is believed that it will not be a decisive meeting.
A market in difficulty: the challenges of Beko and its competitors
La demand for household appliances in Europe has severely penalized the shares of products manufactured by the Group, favoring low-priced ones from Asia. Arcelik Anonymous Sirketi, the company that, through Beko Europe, acquired Whirlpool's EMEA subsidiaries, recorded a 13,8% increase in sales thanks to the acquisition of Whirlpool shares, but suffered a net loss of 5.001,55 million Turkish lira (try) compared to a net profit of 1.244,75 million in the previous year. The company saw a strong increase in turnover in the half-year, but with a loss of 5.006 million Turkish lira, compared to profits of 4.500 million last year. Competitor also Vestel Ticaret AS reported a decline in sales, equal to 19.260,32 million tries in the third quarter, against 21.171,2 million in the same period of the previous year. The net loss was 418,01 million tries, compared to the profit of 3.130,65 million last year. Production and demand for consumer goods have recorded a sharp decline, and the forecast for the end of the GDP is also negative, with a forecast decline from 4% to just over 3%. These negative data will certainly influence the decisions of Beko Europe in terms of investments and measures.
Golden Power, a feasible answer?
According to many experts, not only Italian ones, the probability that the Italian government can adopt such a demanding intervention as the exercise of Golden Power are scarce. “We also have strong doubts about its feasibility,” comments Miniero. “It would be greatly appreciated if it were implemented, but we are not the only ones to have doubts: recently even the mayor of Siena, who belongs to the center-right government, expressed doubts. And yet, many hoped for it because during the last election campaign, government officials came to Siena to reassure us about the adoption of the Golden Power in the event that Beko decided not to invest in Italian factories, putting employment at risk. We are not very optimistic, and in fact immediately after the announcement of the closure of the Polish and British factories, we called a four-hour strike, with significant participation from citizens.”
Unions united: “Clarity and collaboration now”
The continuous postponements of the meeting with Minister Urso, precisely in the months in which concerns about the future of European and Italian manufacturing in the sector were gathering, together with the almost total lack of communication from Beko, have created a climate of uncertainty. "For this reason we will finally forcefully ask for clarity and collaboration - he states Gianluca Ficco of the national secretariat of Uilm –. If these two conditions exist in Rome, I believe that we will be able to find a solution together to overcome, where possible, the serious problems. What is certain, however, is that Italy and thehousehold appliances industry must regain competitiveness, and to do this you need investments immediate. If this does not happen, the government will have to apply, as promised, the Golden Power option. In short, the 'carrot and stick' method must be adopted. Everyone, without exception, realizes that, even though it is a meeting to present a complex plan, something significant for the future of factories and employment will certainly come out of it”.
“The anticipation is very strong and we expect it to be a very high level meeting – he comments Massimiliano Nobis, of the national secretariat of Fim Cisl – there is a great uncertainty and we will consequently have to get to the heart of the problems, but trying to be collaborative and constructive. What is needed is for the company to invest in Italian factories to save jobs”.
The unions' caution and appeal to remain realistic are justified by the fact that, between September 2023 and September 2024, Italian production fell by 14%, mainly due to the collapse of exports (-11,7%). This is happening while market demand was recovering, but only benefiting Asian household appliances.
