This article was updated on Wednesday, 7 May at 3:05pm following the joint response from the economy and labour ministries.
“It’s catastrophic, it’s another blow to the 130 employees at the site,” said OBL central secretary Stefano Araujo on 7 May when contacted by Paperjam. “They feel lost and abandoned.” While no official information has confirmed or denied this, rumours in the corridors and an article published by our colleagues at L’Essentiel have announced the withdrawal of the identified buyer of the Liberty Steel site in Dudelange, Tosyalı Holding.
This news has now been confirmed following the joint response, to Paperjam, from the economy and labour ministries.
“On the evening of 6 May 2025, economy minister Lex Delles (DP) and labour minister Georges Mischo (CSV) were informed that the Tosyalı Group is withdrawing from the process of acquiring Liberty Steel’s plants in Dudelange,” wrote Delles’s communications team.
“It was undoubtedly the best candidate, with a transfer of activity, the retention of employees, a willingness to invest in the site and a long-term business plan,” commented Robert Fornieri, a member of the LCGB management committee. “If this is confirmed, we would be in the worst possible situation for the employees and for the site in Dudelange.”
The Delange site mentioned in an interview
In the statement, the economy ministry added: “The Tosyalı group states that it has taken this decision as part of its ‘due diligence’ procedure following the of the safeguard measures on imports of steel from third countries [editor’s note: measures which will expire in June 2026]. The ministers deplore the fact that the Tosyalı group has taken this decision despite the efforts made over the last few months to support the resumption of activities at Dudelange.”
As a result, the Turkish group’s development prospects would have been hampered by its inability to import production from its other plants. Tosyalı Holding did not yet have a presence in Europe, and the acquisition of Liberty Steel in Dudelange was intended to be its first presence on the Old Continent. “But between the sale imposed at the time by the European Commission--forcing ArcelorMittal to sell the site to Liberty Steel--and this latest U-turn… that’s twice now that Brussels has put obstacles in the way of European industry,” said Fornieri.
"Two weeks ago, in an interview transcribed on a specialist media outlet, the CEO of Tosyalı Holding confirmed that they were still in negotiations for a new purchase with Luxembourg,” said Araujo. “So it’s really hard to understand this turnaround.”
“Thanks to our intervention, all the parameters of this establishment will also change,” said Fuat Tosyalı in that interview, referring to the Dudelange site.
What does the future hold?
“Now we’re set back almost four years--we’ve lost an incredible amount of time,” Fornieri said. “The worst thing, of course, is the situation for the remaining 130 employees. Some have turned down jobs in the hope of finding their way back to Dudelange and there is still by which some cross-border employees are still not receiving unemployment benefits.”
Another point raised by Araujo: the future of the site. “Should employees continue to maintain the machines with a view to a possible takeover by another buyer? And if no buyer is found, what will become of the debts accumulated by Liberty Steel--will it be Luxembourg taxpayers who have to pay them back?”
The government is equally concerned, with the services of the labour minister and unemployment agency Adem remaining “mobilised to help former employees find new jobs,” said Delles’s communications team, adding: “It is also up to the trustee to decide what action to take as part of the bankruptcy proceedings.”
Paperjam has contacted curator Olivier Wagner but, at the time of writing, he cannot be reached.
This article in French.