Business and Made in Italy Minister
Adolfo Urso said Thursday that the best offer for the Acciaierie
d'Italia (ADI) steelworks in Taranto, which was formerly known
as ILVA, has been made by an Azerbaijani consortium led by Baku
Steel.
The Azerbaijani offer was one of three made for the whole
industrial complex.
Seven other offers were presented for single assets.
The plant in the Puglia city is one of the largest in Europe and
a major employer in the region.
"The administrators announced that today they will send a formal
request to be authorised to negotiate with the international
entity that has made the best proposal, which likely to be that
of the Azerbaijani group," Urso said.
The steelworks, which has over 8,000 employees, was put into
special administration by the government last year and ADI
declared insolvent after the multinational ArcelorMittal's term
as the majority stakeholder ended acrimoniously.
The plant has been the subject of legal battles over its impact
on the environment and on local people's health for many years.
In 2019, the European Court of Human Rights found that the
steelworks had a significant negative impact on the environment
and the health of local residents.
Previous owners the Riva family were convicted of causing higher
than normal cancer rates in Taranto, especially among children.
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