Tonight, on the occasion ofmeeting with the unions, (at 19pm) the government will have to make a point and communicate how it intends to proceed after it clash with the private partner of Steelworks of Italy, ArcelorMittal, on Monday. There are not thousands of alternatives: either we somehow get back to the table with the Indians, or we find a other partner (but there is no queue outside) or you go toextraordinary administration, a hypothesis that the government has put forward and which appears to be the only way out in the absence of an agreement. An alternative that also exists: it is the so-called negotiated settlement expected from new code of the business crisis.
Urso: “The urgency of a drastic intervention and a crew change”
While in the last few hours discussions have continued between the lawyers of Invitalia (public shareholder with 38% of the capital) and of ArcelorMittal (62%), declarations follow one another. This morning the Minister of Business and Made in Italy Adolfo Urso with an information in Senate underlined "theurgency of intervention drastic that marks a clear turning point compared to the not at all exciting events of the last 10 years,” he said. And then he clarified: “None of what had been planned and agreed upon was achieved. Nothing has been maintained regarding employment commitments and industrial relaunch."
On the former Ilva "we intend to reverse course changing crew. We are committed to rebuilding the former competitive Ilva on the green technology on which the Italian steel mills, the first in Europe, are already engaged", the minister then guaranteed. “The plant is in a serious crisis situation. In 2023, production will stand at less than 3 million tonnes, as in 2022, well below the minimum target which should have been 4 million, and then this year it will rise to 5 million".
Orlando: “There was a billion allocated by the Draghi government”
“One billion had been allocated by the Draghi government” said the Democratic Party deputy and former Labor Minister, Andrea Orlando, as reported by the agency Say. “I also remember well the assessments of Minister Giorgetti and Minister Franco, because there was a growing distrust - adds the Democratic representative - towards Indian investors. A distrust that proved to be increasingly justified in the following months. That investment was made to allow a change in the balance of capital and therefore also in governance, but that money was taken and used to pay the bills of Acciaierie d'Italia. In practice, the Meloni government found a billion on the table which would have allowed it to review the internal balance of capital, but that money was used for current spending, without particular guarantees from ArcelorMittal".
Other possible partners as an alternative to alternatives to ArcelorMittal
Finding other partners and capital is not easy, given the difficulty in exposing oneself in this moment of uncertainty. According to press rumours, the possible roads could lead to Vulcan Green Steel, Metinvest or Arvedi, who at the moment prefers not to comment. However, he assures the president of Federacciai, Tonino Gozzi, private individuals "are ready to do their part in the relaunch of the former Ilva, but only if certain conditions are met. We need – he states – a truth-telling operation on the accounts, on the shareholders' agreements with Mittal and on the state of the machinery. And then we need certainty on a financial and industrial level."
The knots to untie
The situation is known: the company needs a immediate capital increase 320 million and then at least another billion to take over the plants from Ilva under extraordinary administration by May. ArcelorMittal does not want to inject new resources because it underlines that it has "already invested 1.870 million euros in equity as well as more than 200 million for the purchase of raw materials and other commercial guarantees" while "it Italian State has invested 1.080 million so far." Invitalia would also be willing to fully subscribe to the capital increase of 320 million - thus reaching 66% of the capital thanks also to the conversion of the loan from a year ago of 680 million - but only on condition of a governance change which ArcelorMittal does not want to grant because it is already equal and believes it should be maintained control status at 50% even with reversed share weights"
The elephant in the living room: the commissionership
Everyone pretends not to see it, but the hypothesis of a commissionership could be just a step away. Also on Tuesday was the undersecretary of Mimit Massimo Bitonci indicated it as the most probable solution and the same Urso he enchanted her as possible to the president of Confindustria Taranto Salvatore Toma in an informal meeting. “The hypothesis of extraordinary administration – underlined Toma – unfortunately is not excluded even if the minister said that, in this case, it will be temporary, 6 months or at most 12, to ferry the State towards the majority. We reiterated that it is essential to safeguard the invoices of related companies for the work already carried out". The extraordinary administration scares the territory. He hopes to avoid it too Rocco Palombella, general secretary of Uilm, who expects the government to "assume responsibility appropriate to the gravity of the situation".
The financial taps are also closing: Banca Ifis is withdrawing
When things get bad there are those who are the first to give up: the banks, which have started to close the taps of loans and credit lines. He started writing it down Bank Ifis, but according to some rumors in Taranto other banks they are about to do the same thing: with a letter addressed to Adi spa and its various suppliers yesterday, the bank revoked the non-recourse limit. In practice, from this week the invoices destined for Adi, who have been in clear trouble with payments for months, will no longer be discounted by Banca Ifis.
For a group with turnover in free fall and losses estimated at 60-80 million euros per month, it is another problem in addition to that of the need for an injection of fresh capital to prevent the entire Taranto industry from collapsing . “On 9 January 2024” reports La Stampa “Banca Ifis took note of the communication released by the Presidency of the Council of Ministers on 8 January 2024 in which ArcelorMittal's "unavailability" to undertake "financial and investment commitments" was made known , not even as a minority shareholder" of Acciaierie d'Italia. Therefore, the letter continues, “in light of this communication relating to the risk of business non-continuity, the Bank communicates the revokes, with immediate effect on non-recourse ceiling granted by it on the assigned debtor indicated above".
The result is that from the receipt of this letter "no further credit, compared to those whose assignment has been completed and made effective towards the assigned debtor, can be considered accepted as guarantee".
The judicial investigation
In this picture, as if that wasn't enough, ajudicial investigation started months ago, it has regained strength with the blitz of the Carabinieri of the Noe of Lecce in the Taranto plant to acquire documentation on the emission levels of the plants, while the decision of the Lombardy Regional Administrative Court is awaited on the supply of gas at risk due to non-payment of bills.
