Ex Ilva, deals exclusively with Michael Flacks’ fund (which offered one euro for Taranto steel): «Four months to close»

Ilva is preparing to turn the page (again) and change owners. After a thousand turns, now it’s Michael Flacks’ turn. The supervisory committees of Ilva and Acciaierie d’Italia in extraordinary administration they have in fact indicated to the commissioners to proceed exclusive negotiation with the investment fund of the Manchester billionaire (who however has the heart of his financial activities in Miami). The businessman he presented an offer of one euro to take over the steel group. The only other offer received for the entire perimeter of the steelworks plants was that of the group Bedrock.

Four months to close

The extraordinary commissioners of the former Ilva have therefore started exclusive negotiations with the Flacks group: a direct negotiation phase now begins, with the proposal of the US fund which may also undergo changes, starting from the public shareholding, which the investor proposes of 40%. Furthermore, in the plan indicated by the company, there is talk of 5 billion euros of investments and the employment of over 8 thousand workers. Once the negotiations between the company and the commissioners have been concluded, the definitive agreement proposal will be submitted to the government which will decide whether to proceed. The objective indicated by the Minister of Business Adolfo Urso is to conclude the assignment of the steelworks – if the negotiation has a favorable outcome – within the first quarter of 2026.

The fears of the unions and the no to the reopening of the blast furnace

However, the scenario alarms the unions. «We will not leave the fate of 20 thousand workers in the hands of an investment fund. A central role for the State is fundamental”, declared the general secretary of Uilm, Rocco Palombella.
Meanwhile, a new no has arrived from the Taranto Prosecutor’s Office to the request for the release of blast furnace 1 from seizurestopped since last May after a fire. Since then the Apulian steelworks has operated with only one blast furnace, number 4, with reduced production capacity. The unions’ concern is consequently very high, also because the restart of blast furnace 2, expected for 31 December, appears to have been postponed.
Employees on CIGS in Taranto are expected to rise to 6,000 from next January out of approximately 8 thousand total employees. And an agenda, approved in the Chamber, provides for the launch of support, training and professional retraining programmes.

Who is the British billionaire who wants to revive Ilva

Flacks built his fortune, after dropping out of school, by taking over and relaunching companies in difficulty and in 2025 he reached a personal wealth estimated at 1.68 billion pounds (about 1.93 billion euros). «I don’t buy profitable companies. I bought dilapidated buildings and turned them into gold. It’s all I’ve ever done”, declared the investor in a recent interview with Bloomberg, where he defined the former Ilva “one of a kind”.
«You can’t come and build a steel plant of this size. And it is not possible to import one from China”, added the entrepreneur, explaining that he is not worried about the environmental issue and that he estimates the overall cost of the restoration at 5 billion euros. “We want to make it grow,” assured Flacks. «We need 8,500 people in our industrial plan».

The ambitious industrial plan (with the State as shareholder)

The strategy studied for the complicated relaunch of Ilva includes investments to double steel production up to 4 million tons per year and a public participation of 40% of the Italian Statewhich the Miami-based fund would acquire, in the future, for an amount between 500 million and one billion euros.
«The Flacks group – we can read on the fund’s Linkedin page – has reached an agreement with the Italian government for the acquisition of the Ilva steelworks, the largest integrated steel plant in Europe. This acquisition secures the long-term future of a historic industrial platform, supports approximately 8,500 skilled workers and strengthens key European supply chains for the automotive, construction and infrastructure sectors. We are investing up to €5 billion to modernize operations, including electrification and modernization of kilns, promoting decarbonisation, efficiency and sustainable growth. The Italian government will remain a strategic partner with a 40% stake, while Flacks Group holds an option to acquire a further 40% in the future, reflecting our focus on long-term industrial partnership,” the text reads.
«This transaction puts people first. Our goal is to invest for the long term, modernize responsibly and ensure a long-lasting future for this historic steel plant,” says founder and president Michael Flacks.

Employment and programs

The plan will now have to be illustrated to the unions and the government. The summons to Palazzo Chigi has not yet been announced. «We only learned from the newspapers that the preferential and exclusive negotiation should be started with Flacks Group, with previews on production and possible hiring that do not convince us», immediately declared the general secretary of the Fiom CGIL of Taranto, Francesco Brigati.
“We are not passionate about the name of the person who will start the negotiation”, declared the national secretary of the Fim Cisl, Valerio D’Alò, asking to “think about plans and not names, about production relaunch, about decarbonisation, about employment for all workers”.

December 30, 2025 (modified December 30, 2025 | 18:31)

© ALL RIGHTS RESERVED