ArcelorMittal signs investment agreement with Invitalia
ArcelorMittal announces that it has signed a binding agreement (the ‘Investment Agreement’) with Invitalia, an Italian state-owned company, forming a public-private partnership between the parties. The Investment Agreement will result in a recapitalization of AM InvestCo, ArcelorMittal’s subsidiary which signed the lease and obligation to purchase agreement for Ilva’s business. Invitalia will invest in AM InvestCo in two tranches:
- The first investment of €400 million will be made by 31 January 2021 (subject to EU antitrust authorization), providing Invitalia with joint control over AM InvestCo;
- The second tranche of up to €680 million is payable on closing of AM InvestCo’s purchase of Ilva’s business, which is subject to the satisfaction of various conditions precedent* by May 2022, at which point Invitalia’s shareholding in AM InvestCo would reach 60%. ArcelorMittal will also invest up to €70 million, to the extent necessary to retain a 40% shareholding and joint control over the company.
The updated industrial plan agreed between AM InvestCo and Invitalia involves investment in lower-carbon steelmaking technologies, including the construction of a 2.5 million tonne Electric Arc Furnace. The industrial plan, which targets reaching 8 million tonnes of production in 2025, involves a series of public support measures including ongoing government funded employment support.
AM InvestCo’s governance would be based on the principle of joint control starting from Invitalia’s first investment.
*The conditions precedent to closing include: the amendment of the existing environmental plan to account for changes in the new industrial plan; the lifting of all criminal seizures on the Taranto plant; and the absence of restrictive measures – in the context of criminal proceedings where Ilva is a defendant – being imposed against AM InvestCo.
ArcelorMittal is the world’s leading steel and mining company, with a presence in 60 countries and primary steelmaking facilities in 18 countries. In 2019, ArcelorMittal had revenues of $70.6 billion and crude steel production of 89.8 million metric tonnes, while iron ore production reached 57.1 million metric tonnes.
