By Inti Landauro
Steel company ArcelorMittal (MT) Thursday withdrew its
application for a European Commission subsidy for its ULCOS project
at the embattled Florange steel plant in Eastern France, a week
after signing an accord with the French government to avoid laying
off more than 600 employees.
"We have received a letter today from ArcelorMittal where they
inform us they have decided to withdraw the application for the
ULCOS project due to technical difficulties," a spokesperson for
the European Commission said Thursday.
In a statement sent by e-mail, the company said it still intends
to research the project, which aims to create a new benchmark for
producing steel with lower carbon emissions.
Last Friday, the French Prime Minister Jean-Marc Ayrault said
ArcelorMittal agreed after weeks of controversy that included
threats of expropriation, to mothball two blast furnaces instead of
closing them as it had originally planned. The company and the
government cited the ULCOS project as a justification for keeping
the furnaces open.
ArcelorMittal had said in the past that its ULCOS project would
seek a subsidy from the European Commission available through a
tender called NER300. The European Commission is expected to launch
another similar tender in the future.
Following the ArcelorMittal announcement, Mr. Ayrault sent a
statement saying the company remains committed to pursuing the
project and invest in its development. The government will back the
project with EUR150 million, he said.
(Alessandro Torello, Alex MacDonald and Ruth Bender contributed
to this article)
Write to Inti Landauro at inti.landauro@dowjones.com
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