On April 8, a press conference was held in Lecco, Italy to present Caleotto Spa, the new company created as a 50-50 joint venture by Duferco Italia Holding and Feralpi Siderurgica Spa, the two companies that acquired the Lecco-based wire rod mill branch of Lucchini SpA which had been in extraordinary administration for more than two years. The industrial plan of the new company was explained by Giuseppe Pasini, president of Caleotto and also of Feralpi Group, and by Antonio Gozzi, CEO of Duferco.
The start of production is scheduled for mid-May, with the resumption of work of all the 74 employees of the plant. The transaction, announced on March 18 this year awaits the green light of the European antitrust authorities, which should not present a problem since Duferco and Feralpi do not have a large market share in the quality steel sector.
Duferco and Feralpi will roll billets produced by the two groups, respectively in the steel mills of San Zeno Naviglio and Calvisano, both in the province of Brescia, Italy. The goal is to reach an annual output of 300,000 mt of wire rod by 2019, starting from 73,000 mt in 2015. Duferco and Feralpi, said Giuseppe Pasini at the presentation of the business plan of Caleotto Spa, will pay more than €20 million at the closing of the operation.
Investments in the 2015-2019 period will exceed €5 million. The areas of intervention will focus on the modernization of the plant, adjustments of facilities on the technical and production side, efficiency improvement and setting high standards of quality, safety and environmental issues, according to a statement issued by Caleotto.
The business plan of Caleotto, according to the company statement, is based on three main drivers:
- vocation to the production of high quality wire rod, with a strong attitude in providing high customer service thanks to a very broad and diverse range of products.
- supply of steel. The mill will be powered by two highly qualified and dedicated suppliers, Duferco and Feralpi, which guarantee high quality of steel in brands and optimal size for the processings at Caleotto.
- geography and tradition. The geographical position of the Lecco-based mill is privileged because within about 60 km is the largest area ofnational consumption of wire rod in Italy. Thanks to the partnership between Duferco and Feralpi, the tradition that belongs to the site of Lecco, consisting of high quality and efficient service, will find a new impetus to move to the top of the market.
The restart of the mill will expand the possibilities for wire rod supply of diameters in the range of 5.5-21 mm to many companies. In the area of Lecco, there are about 670 end-user companies with a total turnover of over €650 million.