Debt finance deal secures steel jobs
HUNDREDS of steel jobs in south Wales have been secured following a major debt refinancing deal.
Spanish-owned Celsa, which employs 600 at its steel plant in Cardiff, has confirmed a major refinancing of its debt, in a deal that puts the firm in a much stronger position.
The Catalan business, which employs 1,400 in the UK, has struck a refinancing deal with a consortium of lenders that will see its current debt pile of £2.4bn cut in half over the next five years.
And the remaining £1.2bn will be taken off the company’s balance sheet until it matures in 2023 – giving the business the breathing space it requires to continue to improve its trading position.
Celsa is the UK’s largest manufacturer of steel reinforcement products, with 100% of its output produced from recycled scrap.
It directly employs 600 people, together with 194 full-time contractors, at its two main sites at East Moors Road and Tremorfa in Cardiff.
Earlier this year the energy-intensive plant secured a £1.6m investment from the Welsh Government to support environmental improvements.
Celsa said the deal would “normalise its financial situation” and result in it upgrading its forecasts for this year.
In a statement, the company added: “This agreement gives full support to our strategic plan and allows us to look to the future with guarantees.”