Federacciai supports AST takeover by Italian firm

Alessandro Banzato, head of Italian steelmakers association Federacciai, strongly supports the possible sale of Acciai Speciali Terni (AST) to one of the Italian companies interested.

Speaking during a press conference in Milan attended by Kallanish, the executive noted that two major Italian groups have expressed their interest in the Italian stainless and special steels assets of thyssenkrupp. He added that this clear interest shows that the outlook for the mill should be positive.

Over the summer a number of sources noted that four firms were interested in the assets, two of them Italian – Arvedi and Marcegaglia – and two foreign companies.

ThyssenKrupp’s Italian unit is going through a difficult patch due to the collapse in demand related to the coronavirus pandemic, and has been extending layoffs and limiting output. In September AST produced 8,500 tonnes of black coil, 18,000t of hot rolled strip and 45,000t of cold rolled products.