Production at Romania’s biggest still plant should increase rather than decrease after ArcelorMittal will sell the steel plant in Galati, in order to comply with European competition rules, Deputy Prime Minister Viorel Stefan said yesterday during a competition conference for energy – intensive companies.

“The steel plant is part of a large package made of 7 plants, 6 of which to be bought by a single investor from ArcelorMittal. The deal would be monitored to result in a production increase […] There will also be a 5 to 10-year monitoring period after the transaction,” said the Romanian official.

ArcelorMittal is willing to sell the Romanian steel plant to comply with competition and anti-monopoly rules as it plans to take over the biggest steel plant in Italy, Ilva. ArcelorMittal Galati officials also said that the sale does not mean the closing of the plant.

The transaction will take several months to complete after the European Commission approves it, according to ArcelorMittal Galati CEO Bruno Ribo.

In recent years, the steel plant produced an average 2 million tons of steel. About 7,000 employees work at this industrial site, 5,500 of whom are ArcelorMittal’s employees while the others work for contractors.

editor@romania-insider.com