Unions call for emergency meeting as Liberty Dudelange sale collapses
Luxembourg trade unions OGBL and LCGB are demanding an emergency meeting with the economy and labour ministers after Tosyali withdrew from its proposed acquisition of Liberty Dudelange.
“It is imperative that all parties involved immediately come together to define clear, concrete, and immediate solutions for employees,” the unions say in a joint note seen by Kallanish.
The unions previously proposed the establishment of a sectoral redeployment unit, based on the “CDR” model used successfully within the tripartite framework of the steel and aviation industries.
“Beyond employees, the country’s industrial future is also at stake. Measures must be taken to preserve threatened production facilities, especially when their viability has been proven. Luxembourg cannot afford to lose its expertise or see its industrial capabilities erode amid indifference,” the unions add.
Tosyali could not be immediately reached for comment.
The Turkish steelmaking group emerged as a potential buyer for bankrupt Dudelange in February. The unit has approximately 140 employees following a reduction in staff. It has remained inactive for more than two years, with the exception of a production test conducted in July 2024.
Adam Smith Poland
75 Jahre EUROMETAL: Die Zukunft der Stahldistribution im Fokus
EUROMETAL, die führende Stimme der europäischen Stahldistribution, feiert in diesem Jahr ihr 75-jähriges Bestehen mit einer hochkarätigen Konferenz in Luxemburg.
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ArcelorMittal’s Belval revamp approaches completion
ArcelorMittal’s SteelUp! project at Belval in Luxembourg is advancing to phase two and approaching completion. The brownfield project involves the modernisation of the site by relocating the production of semi-finished products fed to the Rodange sections mill – to reduce emissions and increase productivity.
New workstation installations will be operational, followed by a commissioning phase by year-end, Kallanish notes.
The project comprises a digitised “no man on the floor” electric arc furnace with increased safety, a 15% energy consumption reduction, and 15% heavy sections productivity hike. A new vacuum degassing system will reduce dissolved gas. The works include a continuous casting transformation system for new high-carbon steel grades and heavier beam blanks.
The scrap baskets will be enlarged to fill the furnace in one operation, boosting steel melting capacity each cycle. The company has completed the strengthening of the continuous casting.
“This reinforcement will enable the facility to produce a wide range of profiles, from 320 kg/m to 915 kg/m – a capability that typically requires two separate continuous casting lines at other steel plants. Additionally, the automation phase is now beginning, with the arrival of new extractors scheduled for September 2025,” the firm says. The new vacuum degasser will be commissioned by mid-2025.
The project also involves a new 150m² platform with a 100-tonne hot briquetted iron supply system. The HBI, used to make Rodange’s semi-finished products, is stored and distributed in a silo near the scrap yard. “This allows the creation of new metallurgical grades previously only achievable with blast furnaces.”
The modernisation will help to reach a certified low carbon footprint for steel of below 300kg per tonne, cutting CO2 by 200,000 t/year. The Belval site will obtain the XCarb label for rails produced from mill A.
The new Belval EAF costs about €67 million ($72.4m), including €15m from state subsidies.
ArcelorMittal Luxembourg produced 1.9 million tonnes of crude steel in 2023 and employs 3,368 workers. The new Belval EAF will increase ArcelorMittal Luxembourg production to 2.5m t/y of steel.
ArcelorMittal is investing in decarbonisation, product quality and increasing capacity at its Luxembourg long products facilities in Differdange and Belval.
Natalia Capra France
Tosyali emerges for Liberty Steel Dudelange facility
The bankrupt Liberty Steel Dudelange facility’s receiver has communicated to trade unions that a decision has been reached on the buyer for the plant, informed sources tell Kallanish.
The prospective buyer is a Turkish steelmaking group that shares the same objective as the Luxembourg government – a commitment to finalise the transaction promptly to facilitate the resumption of production, according to sources.
The buyer could be Tosyali, which was reported last month to be seeking to acquire a European steel producer, citing the challenges faced by EU-based mills reliant on coal-based production. The company’s strategy involves supplying semi-finished products to downstream manufacturers rather than competing directly with final products in the EU market.
Tosyali did not respond to request for comment before deadline on Friday.
The Luxembourg government aims to maximise financial recovery to address Liberty’s outstanding debt, with the government itself among the creditors due to various employee-related expenses incurred by the previous owner. The government maintains ownership of the land and is expected to grant new concession rights to the prospective owner.
The asset will be sold instead of being transferred without compensation. The facility is said to be in good condition, as some personnel have worked to ensure maintenance. The equipment remains up-to-date and production tests have been successfully executed.
Theoretically, after all paperwork is signed, the buyer will be able to quickly resume production thanks to minimal bureaucracy. The selection made by the receiver must undergo validation by the judge responsible for overseeing the sales process. A source indicates this process may require a few days to complete. Following the state’s approval of the judge’s and receiver’s ruling, the facility will be transferred.
Dudelange currently has approximately 140 employees following a reduction in staff. The facility has remained inactive for more than two years, with the exception of a production test conducted in July 2024.
The Luxembourg commerce tribunal declared the Dudelange facility bankrupt last December (see Kallanish 4 December 2024). In addition to Dudelange, Liberty plans to divest its Magona facility in Italy and its Belgium-based Liege plant. The three businesses combined possess rolling capacity exceeding 2.5 million tonnes/year.
The Magona facility is currently operational following the procurement of hot rolled coil feedstock, while Liege is said to be on the verge of bankruptcy.
Natalia Capra France , Elina Virchenko UAE
Navigation blocked on the Moselle: lock accident halts traffic until Spring
A cargo ship collided with a lock gate on the Moselle River, bringing river traffic to a standstill. Officials do not expect the situation to return to normal before spring.
The incident occurred at the Müden lock in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany, when a cargo ship struck a lock gate that was not fully open. The collision caused extensive damage, ripping both leaves of the gate completely from their anchorage. The damaged gate and several associated components will need to be entirely replaced.
According to the Waterways and Shipping Authority (WSA) Moselle-Saar-Lahn, navigation on the Moselle will likely remain suspended until the end of March. Currently, about 70 vessels are stranded along the river and unable to proceed toward the Rhine.
While river traffic in Luxembourg remains unaffected, the blockade in Germany has imposed significant restrictions, forcing traffic into a single direction only.
The Moselle, a critical waterway traversing Saarland and Rhineland-Palatinate, serves as a vital artery for cargo transport. The prolonged closure is expected to have a significant impact on regional logistics and steel industries reliant on river shipping.
Authorities are working to assess and expedite the repairs, but the scale of the damage necessitates a lengthy process before operations can resume.
Source: lessentiel.lu
Authorities speed up Dudelange sale
Multiple companies have expressed interest in Liberty Steel’s Dudelange facility, according to informed sources speaking to Kallanish.
The primary goal of the government and the receiver is to find a potential buyer. A source suggests the Luxembourg government estimates the Dudelange plant’s bankruptcy procedure will take approximately three months. The receiver, Olivier Wagner, will negotiate a potential price in collaboration with the presiding judge overseeing the case, with assistance from the government. The latter holds ownership of the land and is expected to grant new concession rights to the prospective owner.
According to rumours, Italian service centre Eusider has shown interest in acquiring Dudelange, alongside other prospective buyers. Eusider and Liberty declined to comment.
Last month, the OGBL and LCGB unions urged the Luxembourg government and the European Commission to take immediate action aimed at securing the long-term viability of the site.
Since Liberty Steel did not fit the requirements set by the Luxembourg state to be eligible for temporary layoffs, the government has not supported Dudelange until now. As a result, Liberty Steel took on the responsibility of covering all wages and costs. In October and November, the group did not fulfil its obligation to pay salaries to its workforce.
Last week, the Luxembourg commerce tribunal declared the Dudelange facility bankrupt. The plant has experienced a period of inactivity spanning approximately two years. A union source indicates that the 147 workers at Dudelange had been anticipating the tribunal’s decision.
Another union source indicates the state will now assume responsibility for salaries. In addition to Dudelange and its Belgium-based Liege plant, Liberty plans to divest its Magona facility in Italy. The businesses combined possess rolling capacity exceeding 2.5 million tonnes/year.
Natalia Capra France
Liberty Steel officially bankrupt in Dudelange
The bankruptcy of Liberty Steel’s Dudelange site was declared by the Luxembourg Commercial Court. 147 jobs are at stake.
Neither the local management nor the company’s lawyers were present at the Luxembourg Commercial Court at 9am on Friday 29 November. However, Liberty Liège-Dudelange and its Luxembourg site were declared bankrupt after the management admitted that it was in suspension of payments. Olivier Wagner was appointed receiver in front of a few journalists and the LCGB union’s deputy general secretary, Robert Fornieri, who had made the trip.
“The most urgent matter is the employees, who are entitled to their back pay for October and November,” commented Wagner as he left the court. “They will be entitled to their severance pay under the Labour Code, which corresponds to the month of the bankruptcy, the subsequent month, i.e., December, and half the notice period to which they would have been entitled in the event of conventional dismissal.”
A recovery to avoid the real state of bankruptcy
“Everything will be checked by me under the supervision of the supervisory judge, the files will then be sent to the employment administration. We must wait for the date of verification of the claims, which is set in the judgment for January 17, for it to be ratified and sent to Adem,” continued the new receiver. But since employees cannot wait several weeks without pay, the unions will try to find an accelerated procedure to release certain amounts.
“Contacts have already been made with the ministries. For us, the most important thing is the situation of the 147 employees and their salaries, there is still a long time to go before a single euro arrives in the employees’ bank accounts. The ministry of labour must help us, as it promised us this week”, said Fornieri.
“We will have to react very quickly and quickly get in touch with the receiver. We could perhaps be heading towards an unfinished bankruptcy if buyers act in the meantime to transfer the employment contracts to new ones. Because if we really enter a state of bankruptcy, employment contracts and activity cease, and this is a danger for the installation, especially in winter. This would make any possible recovery difficult,” added the deputy general secretary of the LCGB.
Written by Ioanna Schimizzi
Source: paperjam.lu
ArcelorMittal completes first phase of Differdange decarbonisation project
ArcelorMittal is implementing the decarbonisation project initial phase at its Luxembourg long products facility in Differdange.
It has successfully relocated the black slag pits from their previous position on the outskirts of the site, which was in close proximity to the neighbourhood. A previously unused hall has been transformed into a space to receive the liquid slag in close proximity to the electric arc furnace.
Modifications were made to the facility without interrupting production. This included expanding the storage space and pits inside the hall, as well as installing cladding to insulate the building from the outside. The steelmaker states in a note obtained by Kallanish that placing the slag pits in a covered hall has the advantage of reducing the main nuisances caused by the pouring of slag. The Luxembourg state provided up to 30% of the funding for the pit relocation.
In the second phase, Differdange will install a former converter secondary dedusting system from the ArcelorMittal Florange plant by the end of the year. The new dedusting unit will be connected to local canopy hoods for the rolling mill and steel plant by the end of 2025.
ArcelorMittal is investing in decarbonisation, product quality and increasing capacity at its Luxembourg long products facilities in Differdange and Belval. The company aims to commission new and revamped equipment at both plants between 2024 and 2026. The investment will improve environmental footprint, relocate by-products management areas within the plants, reduce overall emissions, and increase output at Belval.
The company is also launching the “Steelup” project at Belval that involves a new digitised “no man on the floor” EAF with increased safety, a 15% energy consumption reduction, and 15% heavy sections productivity hike. The project includes a new vacuum degassing system to reduce dissolved gas and a continuous casting transformation system for new high-carbon steel grades and heavier beam blanks.
The modernisation will help to reach a certified low carbon footprint for steel of below 300kg per tonne, cutting CO2 by 200,000 t/year. The Belval site will obtain the XCarb label for rails produced from mill A.
The new Belval EAF costs about €67 million ($74.2m), including €15m from state subsidies. The Differdange revamp will cost around €18m, including €5m from the local government.
ArcelorMittal Luxembourg produced 1.9 million tonnes of crude steel in 2022 and employs 3,368 workers. The new Belval EAF will increase ArcelorMittal Luxembourg production to 2.5 million t/y of steel.
Natalia Capra France
