RSS
Coronavirus pandemic spurs reduction in steel production in Liberty Steel Group by 20-30 pct
The Liberty Steel Group estimates a reduction of steel production by 20-30 pct, for a period of at least three months and at most a year, reduction which will also affect Romania, announced, on Monday, in Galati (southeast), during a press conference, Sanjeev Gupta, executive chair of GFG Liberty Steel, which also has in its portfolio the steelworks in Galati.
Sanjeev Gupta mentioned however that the level and value of investments programmed to be done in the Galati Steelworks will not be diminished. He said that to reduce the economic effects of the pandemic a series of measures were taken, among them the furlough for three days, by rotation, for support staff, yet a mass layoff of the employees in Galati or in other steelworks of the Group is not considered at this time.
The executive chair of GFG Liberty Steel expressed trust in the continued support of the Government, given that the investment in Galati will continue with the purpose of increasing internal sales, but stated that to maintain a production of minimum 2 million tons of steel per year in Galati and the objective of increasing that to three million tons will require also the help of the Executive in Romania.
The businessman announced that Tuesday he will meet with Prime Minister Ludovic Orban and will discuss the problems that the steel industry is facing.
In the summer of 2019, the Liberty Steel Group paid 740 million euro to buy the Galati Steelworks and another six steel production units and five services centers in seven European countries, acquiring them from the ArcelorMittal Group, which was required by the European Commission to sell them in order to receive approval to buy, instead, the Ilva Steelworks in Italy. At the moment of takeover, Sanjeev Gupta announced investment worth one billion euro, over 10 years, in the Galati Steelworks.