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  • 21/07/2020
  • Media Releases

LIBERTY Magona restarts production lines with fresh investment and new employment as the next generation comes through

  • 20% boost in employment as 81 young recruits join LIBERTY Magona following €10 million investment
  • 40% increase in production capacity following restart of the plant’s mothballed Pickling and Organic Coating No 1 lines
  • First step in €100 million strategic investment to transform LIBERTY Magona into a leading European supplier of coated steel products

Sanjeev Gupta, Executive Chairman of LIBERTY Steel Group and GFG Alliance, today celebrated the restart of LIBERTY Magona’s Pickling Line and the completion of the restart work for the plant’s Organic Coated Line No1. The €10 million investment has led to a 40% increase in production capacity and a 20% increase in employment at the site with 81 young recruits joining the business.

Sanjeev Gupta, Executive Chairman, LIBERTY Steel Group and GFG Alliance said: “I’m delighted to celebrate the first steps in our transformation plan for LIBERTY Magona just 12 months after we acquired the business, and many years since the facility has received investment. The €10 million we have invested to restart the mothballed production lines will boost our capability and competitiveness, but most importantly it will see the next generation coming into our business with 81 new recruits between the ages of 20-25 years joining the LIBERTY Magona team. It is vital to the future of our economy and wider society that we attract more young people into the high-quality, high-skilled, jobs our industry can offer.

“I’d like to thank everyone for being here today. After a difficult time over the last few months following the COVID-19 outbreak, I am pleased we can celebrate some good news and I look forward to further developments in the years to come as we continue to implement our transformation plan.”

Sanjeev was joined by Francesco Ferrari, the Mayor of Piombino, employees and around 40 guests observing strict social distancing rules to formally inaugurate the pickling line which entered service in February this year. The restart of the Pickling Line, which had been closed by the plant’s previous owners in 2012, was one of the key strategic priorities identified by LIBERTY Steel Group when it acquired the Magona operation in July 2019.

The €5 million programme to restart the Pickling line, which can produce more than 800ktpa of prepared steel, was delivered on-time and on-budget and has broadened LIBERTY Magona’s product range and opened a new customer base. The LIBERTY Magona team is also in the process of restarting its Organic Coated (OC) line 1, which has been mothballed since 2009. The additional €5 million investment in the OC1 line will almost double production of LIBERTY Magona’s highly rated, premium organic coated product, supporting domestic and export demand.

Taken together these investments will help ensure LIBERTY Magona is a leading supplier of coated steel products and restore the plant’s long-term profitability through enhanced cost efficiency, flexibility, stock and customer service levels.

Giovanni Carpino, MD for LIBERTY Magona said: “I am very pleased that we were able to restart the Pickling Line on time and to budget and that it is already proving its worth. Following the restart of our OC1 line, after a decade’s suspension, we will be giving ourselves the potential to address greater customer demand in more countries across Europe. We will now look to develop opportunities in the galvanized products market as we look to rebuild our position as one of Italy’s leading manufacturers.”

Further information from:
Paddy Toyne-Sewell, Head of Communications – Europe, GFG Alliance
+44 (0) 7767 498 195
Patrick.toyne-sewell@gfgalliance.com

Patrizia Paperini, Communications Manager -LIBERTY Magona
+39 (0) 329 370 6766
patrizia.paperini@libertysteelgroup.com

Notes to the editors:
GFG Alliance is a collection of global businesses and investments owned by Sanjeev Gupta and his family. The Alliance is structured into three core industrial pillars; LIBERTY Steel Group, ALVANCE Aluminium Group and SIMEC Energy Group, independent of each other yet united through shared values and a purpose to create a sustainable future for industry and society. GFG Alliance employs 35,000 people, across 10 countries and has revenues of USD $20bn. GFG Alliance is a leader in sustainable industry with a mission to become Carbon Neutral by 2030 (CN30). Founded in 1891, as the first Italian producer of tinplate, LIBERTY Magona is a leader in galvanized and pre-painted flat steel products. It will produce around 800,000 tonnes of galvanised, and pre-painted steel each year for automotive, construction, industrial and white goods manufacturers, an increase from 550,000 tonnes currently.