Romania’s Galați steel mill for sale through direct negotiations starting at EUR 200 mln

The new owner will have to secure financing to prepare the equipment for a new production cycle, purchase raw materials, and resume production, Economica.net and Adevarul.ro reported.

The first two international auctions started at EUR 709 million and EUR 463 million, respectively, but failed to attract buyers, despite five prospective bidders expressing interest. The asset valuation subsequently dropped to around EUR 182 million.

“For us, the stake has never been just the sale of assets, but the preservation of industrial capacity and jobs. The creditors' vote now gives us a clear path: we can look for an investor to restart production and offer Galați a real perspective for the coming years,” said Paul-Dieter Cîrlănaru, CEO of CITR, which, alongside Euro Insol, serves as concordat administrator for the steel mill.

Approval before the November 9 deadline prevents the initiation of bankruptcy proceedings and allows the sale process to continue under the proposed procedure. The next step is approval of the plan by the syndic judge, which the concordat administrators will request in the immediate future.

The plan was also presented on November 6 to the interministerial committee set up to protect the state's interests in the steel mill. To protect the jobs of the 2,400 active employees, the Ministry of Labour will extend the payment period for their support from special funds by six months.

During this period, direct negotiations will be conducted with the five major interested investors, three of whom have already analysed the prospect of investing in the plant, the government announced.

Among the investors that expressed interest at different stages of the process were UMB Steel, the company associated with businessman Dorinel Umbrărescu, the Indian group Jindal, the Ukrainian group Metinvest and the Chinese group Risun.

The plant's total debts were estimated at EUR 662 million in January 2026. The main creditors of Liberty Galati include Exim Banca Românească, ANAF and suppliers of raw materials, energy and services. Exim Banca Românească's exposure was approximately EUR 292 million, and debts to ANAF amounted to approximately EUR 120 million.