At Thyssenkrupp, no stone is left unturned. The new head of the group radically rebuilds the battered group. Even with traditional steel there are no taboos.
Essen (dpa) - Another rescue plan for ThyssenKrupp. After the forbidden steel fusion with the competitor Tata and the canceled group division, the permanently troubled mining group is now looking for salvation in a kind of bad bank.
The parts of the group for which Thyssenkrupp no longer sees opportunities in-house are to be combined in a new company segment called "Multi Tracks".
CEO Martina Merz does not rule out radical solutions for the steel sector either. "There are no prohibitions on thinking," emphasized the manager, who took over the helm at the Essen headquarters last October. Even with a minority stake in the traditional division, Thyssenkrupp could be content in the future, as Merz explained in a telephone press conference on Tuesday.
Finding a partner, selling and, if necessary, closing locations are the prospects for the parts of the company that are combined in the new unit. The plant construction, the stainless steel area, the production of springs and stabilizers as well as heavy plate are included. Around one in eight of Thyssenkrupp's approximately 160,000 employees is affected. However, some of these parts of the company would have "considerable potential", assured Merz.
Steel is already being spoken to with potential partners - "quite intensely," said Merz. She didn't want to give names. IG Metall prefers to cooperate with the other German steelmakers Salzgitter and Saarstahl. That is "one of the options we are considering," emphasized Merz.
The manager wants to find a solution for the steel within one year. The corona crisis is helping, she said. The pandemic helped "force problem solving" where it had previously failed due to "egos or prohibitions on thinking or cultural hurdles". Thyssenkrupp is also examining partnerships for the marine sector. The group wants to further develop materials trading and industrial components under its own steam. The automotive business should also remain under the group roof, alliances are also conceivable here.
Merz still sees Thyssenkrupp on a long way. "It's not the magic moment today when everything gets better," she said. Many small steps at high speed are necessary to turn the cumbersome group into an agile group of companies. "There will be no excuses in the future," emphasized Merz. The conversion plans were well received on the stock exchange. After its price jump on Monday, the share was one of the favorites in the MDax with an increase of around 5 percent by noon.
Announcement Thyssenkrupp