Bankrupt Romanian wire producer readies for auction

Romanian steel wire producer Dan Steel, based in Beclean, which is in bankruptcy proceedings since the beginning of the year, is to be auctioned with a starting price of €25.9 million ($28.5m) plus VAT, Kallanish notes.

CITR Cluj Branch, together with Prime Insolv Practice, as judicial liquidators, are organising the auction on 28 April.

“We aim to attract potential investors to bring back to life this factory with a history of over 30 years, which was one of the main employers of the city of Beclean, and at the same time an important company in the metal industry in Romania,” says CITR Cluj Branch senior partner Mariana Boiciuc. “The property has all the necessary utilities and access to the railway on the premises, being suitable for various production activities. In addition to these, photovoltaic projects can be developed on surplus land.”

The asset comprises over 40 hectares of land, buildings with a total usable area of 75,460 square meters and the related equipment. The property is bounded by Valea Viilor street and the railway to the north, to the west by Valea Viilor street, and to the south and east by vacant land.

Dan Steel produces a range of carbon and galvanized steel wire, as well as welded mesh, fencing and nails. The company imported feedstock from Ukraine, Italy, Poland, Belarus and Moldova, from suppliers such as ArcelorMittal, Metinvest, Belarussian Steel Works and Moldova Steel Works. The firm’s main competitors are IS Campia Turzii, Ductil Steel Buzau, and Metalicplas. The main export markets in 2019 were Hungary and Slovakia.

In 2019 the firm suffered from weaker domestic demand compared to 2018 and had planned to increase exports to new markets after shipments abroad also declined on-year (see Kallanish passim). Production fell 26% on-year in 2022 to 31,994 tonnes.

In 2020, Dan Steel has been directed into insolvency proceedings following a request from creditor Unicredit Leasing Corporation.

The company has accumulated debt of over €35 million ($38.5m), which has created additional pressure on its financial situation.

Svetoslav Abrossimov Bulgaria