Romania’s largest steelmaker, Liberty Galați, is on the brink of insolvency after the National Agency for Fiscal Administration (ANAF) voted against a proposed restructuring plan, according to Remus Borza, president of Euro Insol, the court-appointed receiver, quoted by Ziarul Financiar.
Speaking on July 7, Borza warned that “the consequence of this vote will be bankruptcy,” despite the strategic importance of the Galați plant to Romania’s industrial sector. He confirmed that Euro Insol has requested an extension of 30 days from the Galați Tribunal to continue negotiations and secure enough creditor support.
The restructuring plan, jointly submitted by Euro Insol and Sierra Quadrant, required approval from at least 31% of the total creditor mass to proceed. While EximBank, which is owed EUR 300 million, voted in favour of the plan, ANAF – claiming EUR 150 million – rejected it, effectively blocking progress.
Liberty Galați entered insolvency proceedings with EUR 1.2 billion in debt and reported losses of EUR 1.1 billion. Euro Insol announced that it would unilaterally terminate its contract with the plant following ANAF’s decision.
Borza emphasised that ANAF had previously accepted a 42-month repayment plan for its claim in March but was now offered full recovery over a shorter, 30-month period under the revised proposal.
“We did not affect ANAF’s claim, we said we would pay it 100%. Meanwhile, we worked to restart operations, exporting to Austria and signing contracts with Bilka, Mairon, and Damen Galați. Now everything is blocked,” he said.
According to Romania’s Ministry of Finance, Liberty Galați ended 2023 with a turnover of RON 2.1 billion (EUR 420 million), down from RON 3.6 billion the previous year. Losses narrowed to RON 1.6 billion, and the company had 4,900 employees as of year-end.
The steel plant was previously owned by ArcelorMittal and was acquired in July 2019 by Sanjeev Gupta’s GFG Alliance as part of a wider European acquisition. The facility has since faced operational and financial challenges amid fluctuating global steel markets and rising energy costs.
iulian@romania-insider.com
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