According to a recent statement from the European Commission, it has granted a €390 million rescue loan to the Italian steelmaker Acciaierie d’Italia (formerly Ilva) to cover its operating costs until a new operator is selected.
This decision comes after the proposed revision of the 2014 Rescue and Restructuring Aid Guidelines (R&R Guidelines) to include the steel sector in those that can benefit from the aid. In particular, Article 107(3)(c) of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU) enables member states to support the development of certain economic activities subject to certain conditions, where such aid does not adversely affect trading conditions.
The Commission has approved the aid since it “does not unduly affect competition with other steel producers and trade within the internal market”, and also considering that:
- The rescue loan to Acciaierie d’Italia averts social hardship, in particular in Puglia, a region where the unemployment level is consistently above the EU average.
- Its amount is limited to the projected liquidity shortfall and to normal operating costs.
- Italy will submit a restructuring plan, a liquidation plan or evidence of reimbursement.
- The company nor its predecessor have received aid in the past ten years.
In the note, the EC does mention that Italy has been facing an infringement procedure since 2013, as it failed to meet the Industrial Emissions Directive requirements and to ensure that the Taranto plant operations are compliant to the EU law on industrial emissions. “However, the rescue loan approved in today’s decision will be exclusively used to meet operating costs such as contractual wages and supplies for a few months and is without prejudice to potential new steps or decisions that may be taken by the Commission in the context of the ongoing infringement procedure. Italy remains obliged to take all necessary measures to ensure that compliance of the plant’s permit and of the plant’s operation with the Industrial Emissions Directive is achieved in the shortest possible timeframe,” the Commission stated.
As recently reported by SteelOrbis, since February 2024, over €997 million has been invested in maintenance activities and industrial investments to ensure the functionality of the plants in Taranto. At present, Acciaierie d’Italia plans to return the site to an annual production capacity of 4 million metric tons of steel by the end of April 2026.