Unicredit and the German bank DZ Bank have granted Duferco - supported by the German Export Credit Agency (ECA) Euler Hermes through the "buyer's credit" instrument - a loan of €72 million. This will be used for the construction of the new beam rolling mill in San Zeno Naviglio, Brescia, Italy. The plant, based on advanced environmental standards, will allow the company to implement cutting-edge production processes in the name of sustainability.
The loan has a duration of 11 years and was granted to Duferco Travi e Profilati to support the purchase and installation of the production line that will be supplied by German plantmaker SMS Group. A vertically-integrated cycle of long products will be created at the San Zeno Naviglio site. Duferco boasts a market share of around 40 percent in the Italian beam market. Duferco stated that the new plant, which "will be able to add 650,000 metric tons of production capacity", will have "positive direct and indirect employment effects on the territory".
"This project looks to the future, because it represents an important investment that confirms the projection of our group towards an innovative and sustainable development model. Integrated with the San Zeno Naviglio steel mill, the new SBM (SanZeno Beam Mill) rolling mill will be entirely powered by renewable sources and will equip Duferco Travi e Profilati with an extremely efficient system in the heart of the Italian consumer market, allowing the verticalization of the production of steel. The overall investment, around €180 million, will also create new direct employment for around 150 people and countless opportunities for the territory," said Augusto Gozzi, CEO of Duferco Travi e Profilati.
With this operation, explained Alfredo De Falco, head of Unicredit's Corporate & Investment Banking (CIB), "We support an investment that will create new jobs, pay maximum attention to the sustainability of production processes, and increase the competitiveness in European markets of an Italian company that has made history in the steel sector and is growing thanks to innovation."