Nova Željezara Zenica: FBiH Government Knows That 150 Million KM Is Needed to Restart Production, but the Law Ignores This

(Patria) - The management and owners of Nova Željezara Zenica believe that the relevant minister, Vedran Lakić, presented a number of problematic claims during yesterday's session of the House of Representatives of the FBiH Parliament while proposing the controversial law, and failed to answer key questions from representatives.

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Uz glasove SDA i DF-a usvojen Zakon o vanrednoj upravi u Novoj Željezari Zenica

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In the statement, they note that the minister's claim that the law represents an "institutional response for Željezara" has no real basis.

"In Nova Željezara, it is impossible to start and maintain integrated steel production without continuous investment in working capital, since integrated production generates losses, which is why it was shut down," they point out from the factory.

They note that the FBiH Government has been informed that to restart integrated production within a period of up to three months, around 150 million KM needs to be secured, while at the same time the draft law states that its implementation does not require budget funds.

"It is clear that there will be no restart of integrated production," they warn.

In their opinion, the application of the law could enable the FBiH Government to take control of Nova Željezara in order to delay bankruptcy and maintain current employment until the October elections.

"The second effect of the law's application would be the effective prevention of private investment, which, along with the loss of Nova Željezara's assets, would prevent the revitalization of Nova Željezara," the statement reads.

The management and owners of Nova Željezara claim that the FBiH Government did not respond to the majority owner's offer to invest 450 million KM and create 3,500 jobs if the law is withdrawn from the parliamentary procedure.

"This indicates to us that the FBiH Government is not interested in investments and jobs, because these effects occur after the October elections," they stated.

They also assess that the Government is trying to pass the law in order to pressure the majority owner to continue integrated production despite the losses.

"The majority owner will not work to their own detriment under any circumstances," they stated.

Finally, they warned that any potential compensation claim by the majority owner against the Federation of BiH could exceed half a billion convertible marks.

"The majority owner has already sent a warning to the FBiH Government, and the legal team continues activities in this direction without delay," the statement concludes.