EU approves ArcelorMittal sale of assets to Liberty House, including steel plant in Galati

The European Commission has approved the sale by ArcelorMittal, the world’s largest steel producer, of steel plants in several European countries, including in Romania, to Liberty House.

The sale was imposed to satisfy regulatory requirements for its acquisition of Italian steelmaker Ilva.

“In May 2018, the Commission approved the acquisition of Ilva by ArcelorMittal, subject to conditions. ArcelorMittal was required to sell a large package of steel plant assets to a suitable purchaser,” the European Commission said in a statement.

Liberty House the deal would more than doubles its worldwide steel-rolling capacity to 15 million tonnes.

Following the approval, GFG Alliance, a privately held conglomerate, said on Thursday that it plans to integrate most of the mining and engineering businesses under its Liberty House unit into a single global steel business with assets across the UK, Europe and Australia, according to Reuters.

The consolidated business of GFG Alliance would include its UK steel and engineering assets, a steel plant and mines in Australia, and seven European plants it acquired from ArcelorMittal, including the steel plant in Galati, the largest in Romania.

“This combination will form a global champion, with fully integrated capabilities, shipping iron ore and coking coal and semi-finished product from Australia to its manufacturing plants and mills globally,” GFG Alliance executive chairman Sanjeev Gupta said in the statement.

In October 2018, British-owned Liberty, part of Indian-born British mogul Sanjeev Gupta’s global GFG Alliance, announced a conditional agreement to buy four European steel plants, including ArcelorMittal Galați plant.

“In a landmark transaction that would take Liberty’s total rolling capacity to over 15 m tonnes a year, the Group has made a binding offer to buy ArcelorMittal’s major integrated works at Galati in Romania and Ostrava in the Czech Republic, along with rolling mills at Skopje in Macedonia and Piombino in Italy,” Liberty said.