French Minister Wants Mittal Out Of France

[mey hoon DON]

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PARIS (Reuters) - Steelmaker Mittal, which acquired France's Arcelor in 2006, is no longer wanted in France due to years of broken promises, Industry Minister Arnaud Montebourg said on Monday, intensifying a row over plans to close two furnaces in northeastern France.[/font][/color][color=#000000][font=Georgia, Times,]
Montebourg's attack on ArcelorMittal, which he later qualified, risks exacerbating tensions in a dispute that is central to Socialist President Francois Hollande's efforts to save jobs and reverse years of industrial decline.[/font][/color][color=#000000][font=Georgia, Times,]
It came after Montebourg, one of the most left-wing ministers in the government, said last week France could nationalise the company's Florange site on a temporary basis while the government tries to find a buyer.[/font][/color][color=#000000][font=Georgia, Times,]
ArcelorMittal, the world's largest steelmaker, has said it will shut down two blast furnaces at Florange from December 1 unless the government can find a buyer to operate them.[/font][/color][color=#000000][font=Georgia, Times,]
"We no longer want Mittal in France because they haven't respected France," Montebourg said in an interview with Les Echos business daily published on Monday.[/font][/color][color=#000000][font=Georgia, Times,]
He said Chief Executive Lakshmi Mittal had told "shameful lies" since 2006 about the group's plans and had not kept his promises to the French government.[/font][/color][color=#000000][font=Georgia, Times,]
"The problem with the blast furnaces at Florange is not the blast furnaces at Florange, it's Mittal," he said.[/font][/color][color=#000000][font=Georgia, Times,]
A source close to Indian-born Lakshmi Mittal, who according to French media is due to meet with Hollande on Tuesday, told Reuters that management were "very shocked" at Montebourg's words.[/font][/color][color=#000000][font=Georgia, Times,]
"These are quite violent declarations against a company which employs 20,000 people in France," the source said.[/font][/color][color=#000000][font=Georgia, Times,]
BACK-PEDALLING[/font][/color][color=#000000][font=Georgia, Times,]
Qualifying his statement later on Twitter, Montebourg said in a message that while ArcelorMittal's methods were questionable, the group would continue to operate in France, where it has more than 100 industrial sites.[/font][/color][color=#000000][font=Georgia, Times,]
Montebourg's back-pedalling was part of a pattern for the outspoken minister, who previously embarrassed the government by saying it would not allow Peugeot PSA to close a plant near Paris, only to retract the pledge.[/font][/color][color=#000000][font=Georgia, Times,]
Libya's sovereign investment fund, which Montebourg said in November was interested in acquiring a Petroplus refinery in northern France, denied on Monday having expressed interest in the refinery, according to Libya's Lana news agency.[/font][/color][color=#000000][font=Georgia, Times,]
The fate of Florange, situated in the former heart of French steel making country, became a symbol of France's flagging industry during campaigning for the May election and is now a test of Hollande's promise to reverse the decline.[/font][/color][color=#000000][font=Georgia, Times,]
Failure to save jobs at Florange would add to a list of industrial shutdowns, including Peugeot PSA's production site, and risks deepening fears in the public that the government is powerless to save jobs.[/font][/color][color=#000000][font=Georgia, Times,]
Unemployment is at a 13-year high of over 10 percent and October jobless claims due on Tuesday are expected to show another increase.[/font][/color][color=#000000][font=Georgia, Times,]
A spokeswoman for Montebourg was not immediately available to comment. ArcelorMittal, which employs some 20,000 people across France, declined to comment.[/font][/color][color=#000000][font=Georgia, Times,]
Last week, Montebourg said the government had received two offers from buyers interested in acquiring more than just the two blast furnaces, but gave no further details.[/font][/color][color=#000000][font=Georgia, Times,]
ArcelorMittal has denied having received any such offers.[/font][/color][color=#000000][font=Georgia, Times,]
A source close to the company said plans to shut down blast furnaces including those at Florange pre-dated the merger between Arcelor and Mittal, which had never promised to keep the site operating when it signed the deal in 2006.[/font][/color]