The near future ofex Ilva they are the restoration of blast furnaces 1 and 2, the maintenance of blast furnace 4, the construction site, in the first half of next year, of two new ovens electric vehicles which will come into operation in the second half of 2027 and will replace blast furnaces 1 and 2, all to reach 6 million tonnes between the end of 2025 and 2026. But even before seeing these steps implemented, which are part of the new industrial plan presented in the yesterday’s summit at Palazzo Chigi, there is an urgent issue to resolve: money. Acciaierie d’Italia in extraordinary administration has an immediate need for liquidity to avoid sinking. The 150 million that arrived in recent weeks from Ilva under extraordinary administration, which took it from the allocated assets, are the classic drop in the sea. Much more is needed. And so the Government takes action and plans another 150 million intervention. Which will arrive with a decree next week. Overall, therefore, there will be 300 million which will be added to the 320 of the bridge loan provided for by the January decree but currently unavailable as the European Union has not yet given the green light. Now the presentation of the industrial plan should convince the EU to turn on the green light on the loan.
The industrial plan
«If they don’t arrive within a month and a half, we’ll close» says Giovanni Fiori, commissioner of AdI, about the 320 million, according to what sources who participated in the table report, which saw the complete trio of the two extraordinary administrations (Acciaierie and Ilva ), the metalworking unions Fim, Fiom, Uilm, Usb and Ugl and for the Government the undersecretary to the presidency, Alfredo Mantovano, and the ministers Adolfo Urso (Enterprises), Marina Calderone (Labour) and Giancarlo Giorgetti (Economy), the latter in connection. A next meeting is scheduled for May 7th between commissioners and unions at the national Confindustria headquarters. «The situation has a level of gravity that exceeds that expected – says Urso, again according to what sources at the table say -. Acciaierie is among the most complicated dossiers we find ourselves managing. The business plan serves to demonstrate that the loan resources can be repaid. Then it is clear that other resources will have to be provided by the private sector that comes and the Government will do its part with public funds.” Urso insists on the gravity of the situation. He recalls that when Giancarlo Quaranta took office as commissioner, the first to be appointed, the company had a supply for another 3-4 days of activity. «If blast furnace 4 had also gone out, and we were getting there, we would have put an end to it – the minister notes -. We took the company by the hair.” “The road is difficult, there are many obstacles, but I don’t see what other path there could be” replies the Minister of Business to the unions who express criticism, doubts and perplexities on the industrial level. The bottom line of which, explains the minister, is to make the plants safe and then sell the company to “who will present us with a credible plan”. “You know that I maintain my positions, they even called me Adolfo Urss” says the minister, who then reveals that the battle with ArcelorMittal is by no means over. There are still queues, aftermaths, but this is a matter on which the legal offices are working.
On the plant front, work will be done on the resumption of the three existing blast furnaces, 1, 2 and 4. However, the possibility of restarting blast furnace 5, which has been shut down since March 2015, has been set aside. «The critical conditions of blast furnace 5 required it to be stopped and he was stopped – says Commissioner Quaranta -. ArcelorMittal has never intervened on Afo 5 and today we find ourselves with a system that is not such. If we were to intervene, an economic commitment of more than 500 million would be necessary. The renovation would require no less than two-three years.” Furthermore, with the future disappearance of free CO2 quotas, producing 4 million tonnes with blast furnace 5 would require the purchase of 8 million quotas and this would not be sustainable. «It may be that the rules could change – says Quaranta -, but in the meantime we have based the design of the industrial plan on the current rules». And therefore, adds Quaranta, the focus was on restoring the smaller blast furnaces, «to have peace of mind and safety. To redo a small blast furnace it takes 250 million per blast furnace to adapt it to a duration of, let’s imagine, 20 years. Instead, we aimed at interventions worth 50-60 million, aimed at safety, including renovating the crucible and the cooling system.”
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