"There are candidates to take over part of the site, others to take over the site without any activity, i.e. just the machines and installations, but there are also potential buyers with a view to continuing the activity with the employees", Olivier Wagner, the administrator in the case of Liberty Steel in Dudelange, . Fifteen days later and the 14 February deadline for submitting applications from potential buyers has passed.

Contacted by Paperjam this week, the bankruptcy trustee was unavailable to answer questions by telephone and had not yet responded to emailed requests for comment at the time of publication.

However, in the middle of the Carnival holidays, several sources have told Paperjam that the case for a buyer with a transfer of activities and the retention of 147 employees has been finalised. Contacted by Paperjam, Robert Fornieri, deputy general secretary of the LCGB trade union, commented on Tuesday 18 February that "for the moment there is no official confirmation, just rumours in the corridors. It seems that a buyer with an industrial plan has been selected, but it's up to the trustee to announce this. We've been working on this for five years, so we're remaining cautious and attentive.” It would be "the best solution", he had .

In the hands of the trustee

His counterpart, OGBL central secretary Stefano Araujo, had the same reservations. "This is a rare case in Luxembourg, with a bankruptcy and a possible resumption of activities, so we need to remain cautious. Something is said to be in the pipeline, but nothing has been announced yet, and the procedures are still long before any employees return to the site.”

So not everything is done for the takeover of Liberty Steel. Discussions are now scheduled between the trustee, the potential buyer and the bankruptcy judge, with the trustee's primary objective being to settle the company's debts.

Read the original French-language version of this news report /