Evraz has interest of troubled Highveld Steel at heart

I READ your recent article regarding the business rescue plan for Highveld Steel on November 6, titled: “Evraz to fight court action”. I want to clarify a few items from the article.

Highveld Steel and Vanadium has been in operation for nearly 60 years. Evraz, which bought Highveld in 2008, intends to ensure that the steel maker remains in business, employing thousands of people directly and indirectly in the eMalahleni area.

This is the basis on which Evraz, through two subsidiary companies, is opposing the business rescue plan adopted in October, and is applying to the South African courts to halt the plan’s implementation.

The simple fact, as we have stated in our court documents, is that there is no proof of the sustainability of the plan put forward by the business rescue practitioners and accepted at the October 13 meeting of creditors.

We were willing to see a successful business rescue plan, which would lead to Highveld Steel resuming operations and sustaining jobs, but no evidence has been produced that the current plan will achieve these goals.

Evraz fully supports the business rescue process, which we initiated because we did not want to put Highveld into liquidation. We will support any sustainable endeavour to rescue the business of Highveld Steel.