Court, creditors approve restructuring plan for Romanian steelmaker Liberty Galați
<p>The restructuring plan laid out by Liberty Galați was validated by the Galați Court on Friday, August 1, after having been approved by 52% of the ailing plant’s creditors last month.&nbsp;</p>
<p>The plan, approved by creditors and confirmed by the Galați Court, sets out firm measures to restructure both the company’s operational activity and the organizational structure and governance of the companies owned by the shareholder in Romania.&nbsp;</p>
<p>The plan was approved by three out of five creditor categories. Around 20% of the 1,200 creditors voted against it.&nbsp;</p>
<p>Restructuring focuses on five key areas of action: the strategic repositioning of the steel plant and reorientation toward the Romanian market; increasing transparency in the decision-making process and relocating all managerial decisions to Romania; optimizing production costs and reducing dependency on certain suppliers; monetizing non-productive and redundant assets; and securing the financing needed to ensure business continuity and further development.</p>
<p>It also includes the full payment of budgetary claims totaling RON 594 million (EUR 116.9 million), as well as the repayment of the loan received from the Romanian state through Eximbank under the Ukraine state aid scheme, amounting to RON 708 million (EUR 139 million).</p>
<p>Other debts, such as RON 93 million for secured creditors, RON 173 million for suppliers, RON 399 million to unsecured creditors, and wage claims totaling RON 497 million, are also to be paid out.</p>
<p>At the same time, substantial negotiations are currently underway with international investment funds as well as Romanian entrepreneurs regarding the capitalization of the company. The company aims to consolidate itself so it can take part in the relaunching of the European defense industry, infrastructure development, and the beginning of reconstruction efforts in Ukraine.</p>
<p>Administrators at EuroInsol and CITR noted the importance of the steel plant in southern Romania as part of the press release.</p>
<p>“Thousands of local suppliers depend directly on the functioning of the plant, and the social and economic impact of its recovery is immense: over 40,000 direct and indirect jobs, and the preservation of a domestic steel source for key sectors such as industry, infrastructure, defense, and shipbuilding,” said Remus Borza, President of EuroInsol.</p>
<p><em><a href="mailto:radu@romania-insider.com">radu@romania-insider.com</a></em></p>
<p><em>(Photo source: press release)</em></p>