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22 November 2019The Milan investigation into Arcelor Mittal sees the first testimonies on the management of the Ex Ilva of Taranto by the multinational that has now announced its intention to withdraw from its industrial commitment in Italy. From the minutes of the prosecutor's office emerge the testimonies of the executives on the last months of management and on the growing signs of an announced disengagement.

In September "finished the funds"
In several meetings held from September to today, both the former chief executive Mathieu Jehl , and the new chief executive Lucia Morselli , have declared that the company had exhausted the finance dedicated to the operation "of lease with obligation to purchase the former Ilva. This this is what was reported by a manager of Arcelor Mittal, who was heard by prosecutors in Milan on November 18. The passage of the report is reported in the statement of intervention by the Milan Public Prosecutor in the civil dispute between the multinational and the former Ilva.

"130 million blocked"
"We are paying, but with delay. To date we have around 130 million blocked, but, among others, there are also problems in the regularity of the documentation of suppliers", said Finance Director of Arcelor Mittal, Steve Wampach , heard two days ago as heads from prosecutors in Milan investigating the case of the former Ilva.

700 million expected loss in 2019
"As a forecast, we have about 700 million of losses for 2019 and it is according to the Ias Ifrs accounting principles," he put on Wampach's report, heard in the investigation by the Milan prosecutor's office for diversion of assets, omitted tax returns and false communications market.

"To reduce costs, lower the quality of materials"
"The foreign managers argued that for the current 'gear' of the plants (that is to say the production of 6 million tons of steel), the quality of the raw materials was too high and that it was necessary to use lower quality to cut costs" . This is a passage from the deposition of Giuseppe Frustaci , director of Arcelor MittalItalia, heard by the prosecutors in Milan two days ago. The report is reported in the act of intervention of the Public Prosecutor in the civil dispute between the Franco-Indian multinational and the former Ilva.

"We were told by the group's CEO, Gert Van Poelvoorde , that similar measures to downsize the production facilities, in terms above all of the factories' stop, had been taken in other countries, for example in Poland at the Krakow plant". Words recorded in the minutes, as part of the investigation by the Milan Public Prosecutor on Arcelor Mittal, by the manager. In a passage of the deposition, the witness explains that "with reference to the personnel, in the June-July meeting, the foreign managers explicitly asked for the ordinary redundancy fund to be used for about 1300 people, because a few months ago a unfavorable market evolution ".

In the minutes, the manager states that "despite the suspension of the stop plan, the company does not have everything it needs to continue the activity as the procurement of raw materials has been canceled. The plan was to leave a minimum stock of raw materials only for a blast furnace for a month ". And he adds: "Every stop of a blast furnace and the subsequent cooling, although operated following the best practices is never without damage". Damages whose entity "can only occur when it starts again" adding that "there are always damages".