Question for Written Answer
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Question for written answer E-006164/2020 to the Commission Rule 138 Daniela Rondinelli (NI), Isabella Adinolfi (NI), Fabio Massimo Castaldo (NI), Laura Ferrara (NI), Chiara Gemma (NI), Dino Giarrusso (NI) Subject: The dispute between Treofan and Jindal In 2018 the company Treofan sold its Italian plants in Terni and Battipaglia to the Indian conglomerate Jindal. Jindal sold off the Battipaglia plant immediately afterwards and, despite having sealed an agreement with the Ministry of Economic Development in August 2020 to resume production, announced on 5 November 2020 the liquidation of ‘Treofan Italy’ and the closure of the Terni plant. The Italian Government, which found that Jindal had made ‘several attempts to get round the rules’ on the vast amounts of public funds it had received to keep the plant open and save its workers’ jobs, has promised to verify that all COVID-19-related funding was used properly. It added that it would ascertain whether any orders have been transferred to other companies in the Jindal group, which would equate to an attempted takeover with the sole aim of eliminating a competitor and appropriating its customer base. Lastly, according to the trade unions, if Treofan is liquidated then staff will be ineligible for income replacement measures and redevelopment of the site will be impossible. Can the Commission therefore say: 1. Whether it is aware of this dispute and its serious effect on manufacturing and jobs; 2. What it intends to do to protect companies like Treofan from possible predatory takeovers, insulating companies and regions from covert relocations and unfair competition of all forms. PE661.289v01-00.