Jan 11 (Reuters) – Italy’s former Ilba steel business, now called Acciaeri d’Italia (ADI), has a history of environmental and economic challenges and could be placed under special government administration. There is sex.
Production in 2023 is less than 3 million tons compared to the target of 4 million tons, and remains important to the national economy. The company’s main factory in the southern city of Taranto employs around 8,200 people and supports a further 3,500 people working in associated local companies.
Below are some of the important dates in the history of the Taranto factory, which has become synonymous with the Group.
1960 – State-owned Ilva Group builds the first stone of a massive complex in the port city of Taranto that will eventually have the capacity to produce 10 million tons of steel per year for Italy’s booming economy did.
1965 – The Ilva Taranto factory opens. Hundreds of olive trees were uprooted to fill the 15 million square meter area.
1973 – Italian steel production begins to face rising energy costs and an economic downturn caused by the oil crisis following the Arab-Israeli war.
1980 – The European steel industry suffers from high production costs, including energy costs and overcapacity. Intensifying competition from emerging countries and fluctuations in steel demand are further increasing the challenges.
1988 – The Italian government decides to sell the country’s steel mills to private companies.
1995 – Italy’s Riva Group, headquartered in the northern city of Milan, becomes the owner of the Taranto site.
2012 – Judicial authorities order the seizure of the Taranto factory on suspicion of environmental crimes such as air and water pollution. The Italian government manages the facility.
2016 – A regional health authority report found that lung cancer mortality was one-third higher than normal in areas near the Ilva factory, and respiratory disease mortality was 50% higher than average.
2018 – The Italian government sells ADI to ArcelorMittal, one of the world’s largest steel producers, on the condition that the Luxembourg-based group undertakes environmental cleanup activities.
2020 – Amid economic challenges and disagreements over environmental plans, ArcelorMittal announces its intention to withdraw from the agreement.
2021 – After months of wrangling with the steel giant, Italy reaches an agreement with ArcelorMittal to take back control of the troubled steel company and guarantee thousands of jobs.
2024 – ArcelorMittal rejects the Italian government’s plan to take control of the former Ilva, paving the way for a legal battle. (Reporting by Giselda Vagnoni; Editing by Keith Weir)