the steel game is played in the assembly – Corriere.it

On the one hand, the government is asking for a rebalancing of governance, in the words of the Minister for Enterprise Adolfo Urso, referring to the public shareholder Invitalia appointed to increase its stake. On the other hand, the private partner who leads the company, the former Ilva, has been in a liquidity crisis for months, so much so that it is no longer able to pay Eni’s gas and electricity bills, with an exposure exceeding 300 million . It is no longer bankable, so much so that liquidation can no longer be ruled out, sources report. In the middle the trade unions, who are pushing for the nationalization of what used to be Ilva dei Riva and who now would like to bring back to the times of Italsider. The two fronts will come into contact on Friday, in the assembly of Acciaierie d’Italia, in which the government’s resolutions will have to be translated. That is, a greater weight of the state, anticipating the increase in public participation from 32 to 60%, expected in 2024, already in the next year. Only in this way would the government be willing to inject new resourcesthose of the Pnrr for the transition and those of the capital increase envisaged by the Aiuti bis: a total of 2 billion, which the minister himself explained, we have a duty to know how they will be spent.

The meeting on December 2nd

It will be a hot assembly: already convened for last November 25th, postponed to December 2nd. And if it is true that the postponement was agreed by the shareholders, it is equally true that the motivation is to be found in the distant positions of the shareholders. Especially after the slap received by the government from the managing director Lucia Morselli who deserted the meeting scheduled by Urso himself last November 17 after the company’s decision to suspend relations with 145 related companies, with the risk of at least another 2,000 workers on layoffs. A decision on which Acciaierie d’Italia has not backed down. It is evident that the climate is tense: yesterday Urso reiterated that Ilva’s production decline must be reversed immediately. Today it produces just 3 million tons compared to the 6 agreed, with the aim of returning to 8. The resources allocated must be committed to this end, we are also evaluating whether further interventions are necessary to facilitate reconversion and investments.

The node of the release from seizure

Changing governance is not easy. ArcelorMittal currently holds 68% of Acciaierie d’Italia and Invitalia the remaining 32%, with 50% voting rights and CEO expressed by private individuals and president (Franco Bernab) by the public. On paper, everything should remain like this until April 2024, to leave time for the completion of the environmental plan and allow the judiciary to release the plants from seizure, one of the conditions for the State to be in the majority. And on this stake ArcelorMittal leverages: it is not necessary to change governance to inject new resources, nor can we any longer expect it to happen. But the government has the move ready that it can defeat, even if only threatened: the revocation of the contract which allows Acciaierie d’Italia to use the plants. Which are still public, in charge of Ilva in extraordinary administration.