French metallurgical firm Afe Metal plans to invest about 1 billion Slovak crowns ($22 million) in the bankrupt machinery company Martinmetal a.s., Martin, over the next six to eight years. The project should create 600 new job opportunities and should satisfy the claims of state-run institutions, the company's largest creditors, said Danica Kulichová, project manager for brokerage firm Sevis Securities, on June 7.
Martinmetal was declared bankrupt by a regional court in Banská Bystrica in mid-April this year after the firm was unable to pay its debts. The collapse cost 800 jobs.
Now, after carrying out a detailed analysis of the Martinmetal situation, Sevis Securities is holding talks with the firm's biggest creditors, foreign investors, and an official state receiver.
Sevis is also preparing a project for the entry of the French investor, Kulichová
stated. The entry of the French metallurgical company, which occupies a leading position among world steel casting producers, is conditional on the completion of bankruptcy proceedings at the company.