A British-owned international metals and industrial group, specializing in commodities, metals recycling, manufacture of steel, aluminum and engineering products recently announced a conditional agreement to purchase four European steel plants.
The Liberty Group, which is part of the GFG Alliance will acquire 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.
Adding these major steel hubs more than doubles Liberty’s global metal manufacturing capacity in the U.K. as a steel and aluminum supplier to the automotive, aviation and specialist engineering sectors and in Australia supplying steel for building and infrastructure. The Group also makes steel in the USA for the automotive and other sectors.
The four sites in the package have a combined rolling capacity of around 8m tonnes a year and would give Liberty the ability to supply a full range of finished steels, including plate, hot rolled coil, cold rolled coil, galvanized sheet, tin plate, bar, wire rod, and rail. The plants serve domestic and wider European markets, including automotive, construction, industrial machinery, and oil and gas sectors.
“Following relevant approvals for this transaction, the GFG Alliance will have a number of new global hubs in Europe,” said Jay Hambro, chief investment officer of the GFG Alliance. “These steel operations are high-performing, profitable assets with modern equipment, excellent transport connections to key markets and high-skilled workforces. There is huge potential for expansion, further modernization and the application of GFG’s GREENSTEEL strategy.
