Urso: “Former Ilva: a fourth EU industrial group has joined the bidding process”
A ‘fourth major European player’ has entered the international bidding process for the former Ilva site. This was announced by the Minister for Enterprise and Made in Italy, Adolfo Urso, whilst speaking at a panel discussion at the Rimini Meeting. “We must save Ilva and prevent it from becoming a social and economic time bomb for the region,” he warned.
“A rather significant Italian consortium (led by Federacciai, Ed.) has entered the ongoing international tender, alongside Jindal and Flacks. And a fourth major European operator has joined them,” Minister Urso clarified. “We believe in primary industry,” he explained. “Without primary industry, not only is there no European industry, but there is also no freedom or independence for Europe.” “In these extremely critical circumstances,” said Urso, “I call for everyone’s cooperation, as I have always received; we work with all regions regardless of which coalition the voters have legitimately chosen to govern. Well, with the utmost institutional cooperation and the utmost sense of responsibility, we will find a solution for Ilva too, one that will contribute to the growth of the Italian steel industry.” Steel production in Italy “is on the rise. We are not in crisis,” Urso reiterated. It has also increased in the first six months of this year. The June figures, compared with last year, show a 6.1 per cent growth trend in the production of entirely ‘green’ steel. This is because Italia, with its electric furnaces, is the European leader in the production of green steel. Unfortunately, the problem lies in Taranto. I believe a solution must be found, and we are in a position to find it’. At this point, the minister continued, ‘given that the Milan Court of Appeal has ruled in favour of closing the hot section, we must focus on developing green technology – which we are pursuing in any case – whilst striving to maintain production continuity despite the closure of the hot section and the blast furnaces’. “In recent weeks, three blast furnaces have reopened in Europe,” added Urso, “whilst we are closing ours. For two reasons: firstly, because we are unfortunately in a state of war; secondly, because thanks to the action of our government – the Italian government, which I take credit for – the European Commission has changed the rules with effect from 1 July. And here’s the paradox: we’ve managed to change the European rules through the safeguard measures on steel, so European production can restart its blast furnaces. And we’re shutting ours down.”
Meanwhile, a van shaped like a sail has been organised by the trade unions Fim Cisl, Fiom Cgil, Uilm Uil and Usb, and has been touring the streets of Taranto over the last few hours to mark the Mediterranean Games, which were officially opened last Friday, bearing a slogan that refers to the former Ilva issue: ‘You can’t play games with the future of 20,000 workers.’ This is the same message as that of the strike on 3 August, the day after the Milan courts ruled to close the hot area of the steelworks – a strike which, as the trade unions emphasise, saw an extraordinary turnout with the aim of ensuring the safety of all workers through exceptional measures and public intervention that can genuinely guarantee an ecological transition. We are doing this out of respect for the Mediterranean Games, for the athletes, for the delegations and for all those who are contributing to the success of an international event that is so important for our city; and we are doing it with even greater respect for Taranto, a city that has faced many challenges and which, for decades, has paid a very high price for its industrial history. Respect for Taranto also means doing justice to its workers and the city itself. The Games’ slogan, ‘Embrace the future’, is also displayed on the façade of the ‘sail’ – illuminated each evening on the swing bridge – but with a question mark.
