Italy signs deal with Danieli, Ukraine's Metinvest to boost steel output

Danieli & C Officine Meccaniche SpA

17/01/2024 18:39

ROME, Jan 17 (Reuters) - The Italian government has
reached a deal with domestic machine-maker Danieli  DANI.MI  and
Ukraine's Metinvest  METIV.UL  to relaunch the Piombino
steel-making site in Tuscany, the industry ministry said in a
statement on Wednesday.
    Separately, Rome is working to reach a similar agreement
with JSW Group to further expand production in Piombino, where
the Indian steel-to-power conglomerate is already operational,
people familiar with the matter told Reuters.
    Thanks to the involvement of both the Ukrainian and Indian
groups, the government is aiming for a steel production cycle
focused on track manufacturing in the city, the people added.
    Metinvest, Ukraine's largest steelmaker, is looking for
production sites abroad to offset significant asset losses due
to the war with Russia, including the vast Azovstal steel plant
in Mariupol that was destroyed during a prolonged Russian siege.
    Yuriy Ryzhenkov, Metinvest's chief executive, said in the
statement the investment plan would target a capacity of around
3 million tons of steel and contribute to Italy's green
transition.
    Once the project with Metinvest and its two partners is
fully operational, it will employ a total of about 1,500 people
directly and in related industries, Industry Minister Adolfo
Urso said.
    "Today's agreement marks a crucial step in efforts to boost
the Piombino site, which will play a central role in our
national steel plan," Urso added.
    Italy is also seeking ways to keep the troubled former Ilva
steel company afloat despite a clash with its main shareholder
ArcelorMittal  MT.LU .
    The fate of Acciaierie d'Italia (ADI), as Ilva is now known,
is a major headache for Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, as its
closure would cost thousands of jobs and have serious knock-on
effects for the Italian manufacturing sector.

 (Reporting by Giuseppe Fonte, editing by Gavin Jones and
Bernadette Baum)
 ((giuseppe.fonte@thomsonreuters.com; +390680307711;))