Italy is preparing to place Acciaierie d’Italia under special administration

If the procedure is initiated, current liquidity will be guaranteed by a bridge loan of €320 million

Italy will place steel company Acciaierie d’Italia (ADI, formerly Ilva) under special administration to keep it afloat. The government informed the trade unions at a meeting on January 18, RaiNews reports.

On January 15, Acciaierie d’Italia filed an application with the Milan Chamber of Commerce for a negotiated settlement. Subsequently, Invitalia sent a letter to Acciaierie d’Italia holding asking to check the prerequisites for the start of the special administration procedure.

On January 16, ArcelorMittal filed a request for an out-of-court settlement with a Milan court. According to the trade unions, this is an action that takes additional time.

If the special administration procedure is launched, the authorities promise to guarantee current liquidity with a €320 million bridge loan on market terms.

The special administration phase will be temporary, the unions were told. It will take 14 days for the relevant directive, approved by the Council of Ministers on January 16 and finalized in recent days, to come into force. The government is looking for the best private partners to ensure the continuity of production, protect employment and guarantee the safety of workers.

The country’s Ministry of Enterprises and Production and the Ministry of Labor have planned a roundtable with stakeholders (local institutions, trade unions and employers’ associations). In addition, the company is in dialogue with representatives of supplier companies and related industries.

ArcelorMittal owns 62% of the company’s shares, while the state investment agency Invitalia owns 38%.

Acciaierie d’Italia came close to stopping gas supplies due to debts: an Italian court allowed energy companies to cut off gas supplies to ADI. The company appealed this decision to the Council of State, the highest court. This means a freeze on the measures, and any decision on gas supply can only be made after discussions between the regulator Arera and Snam, the supplier of last resort for the former Ilva.

As GMK Center reported, in early January 2024, ArcelorMittal rejected the Italian government’s plan to acquire a controlling stake in ADI. A government statement said that Invitalia was ready to invest about €320 million ($351.10 million) in ADI to increase its stake to 66%. However, the steel corporation has refused to provide guarantees for the additional investments that the company will need, even as a minority shareholder.