| Type | Private |
|---|---|
| Industry | Steel |
| Founded | 1954 |
| Founder(s) | Adriano and Emilio Riva |
| Headquarters | Milan, Italy |
| Key people | Emilio Riva , Chairman Claudio Riva, CEO |
| Products | Hot rolled flat steel Bars Iron rod Slabs |
| Revenue | € 11.261 billion (2008) |
| Operating income | € 0.738 billion (2008) |
| Net income | € 0.503 billion (2008) |
| Total equity | € 4.502 billion (2008) |
| Employees | 24,151 (2008) |
| Website | www.rivagroup.com |
| References: [1] | |
Gruppo Riva is an Italian steel producer. After the Arcelor-Mittal merger and the takeover of Corus by Tata Steel, the group is currently the world’s eighteenth and the third largest steel producer in Europe.[2] Riva Group (consisting of two companies, Riva Acciaio and Ilva) is private-owned and the whole shareholders' equity is held by the Riva family, through the financial institution "Riva FIRE" (which stands for "Finanziaria Industriale Riva Emilio").
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Riva Acciaio was established in 1954 in Milan by Adriano and Emilio Riva as an iron scrap trading business. In 1957 the first Riva Acciaio mini-mill was built in Caronno Pertusella near Varese. A few years later, this plant became the first steelworks in Italy to use continuous casting, in partnership with steel plant engineer Danieli. In the 1960s and 1970s Riva expanded by means of acquisition of several small steel producers in Northern Italy and in Spain (Siderurgica Sevillana). In the 1980s Riva made further acquisitions in Italy (the previously state-owned steelworks Acciaierie di Cornigliano), in Belgium and in France. In 1991 it acquired two mini-mills in the former German Democratic Republic. In 1995 Riva Acciaio purchased ILVA, the largest Italian state-owned steel producer, becoming one of the main European steel companies.
The Ilva plant in Taranto is the largest steelworks in Europe, equipped with five blast furnaces. Riva Acciaio's headquarters are in Milan, and facilities are located in Northern Italy (Caronno Pertusella, Verona, Sellero, Lesegno). The Riva group has foreign subsidiaries in Germany (Brandenburg, Hennigsdorf), France (Bonnières-sur-Seine, Gargenville), Belgium (Charleroi), Spain (Sevilla), Greece (Thessaloniki) and Tunisia (Biserta).
In 2001 the Tribunal of Taranto declared Emilo Riva, his son Claudio, and further ILVA managers, guilty of attempted private violence for having applied some illegal role-demotions to some plant employees. The final sentence has been confirmed in the third degree judgement in 2006. In February 2007, Emilio Riva was condemned to three years of prison, and Claudio Riva to 18 months, for work safety procedures omission as severe as antipollution regulations violations, both related to the Taranto coke plant management. The sentence was confirmed in the second degree judgment on the 10th of October 2008. The Taranto sub-office of the Court of Appeal of Lecce condemned the President of ILVA, Emilio Riva, to two years of prison, and Plant Director, Mr Luigi Caporosso, to one year and eight months of prison. Both were accused for “dangerous things launching”, aggravated damage, and work safety procedures omission within coke department. On the basis of 2006 INES (Inventario Nazionale Emissioni e Loro Sorgenti: Italian National Directory on Emissions and Related Sources) ILVA should produce about 92% of the entire Italian dioxin production.
In 2006 a first degree judgement condemned Emilio Riva and his sons, Fabio Arturo and Claudio, to 1 year and 4 months of prison (waived penalty) to required them to compensate civil parties of “Legambiente”, “Associazione per Cornigliano” and the Federazione dei Verdi political party, to be defined in a separate judgement, due to environmental pollution caused by ILVA plants. On the 19th of January 2009, declared as out-of-terms all crimes related to pollution derived from coke plant, while sending back to the local General Attorney any action related to the blast furnace, due to a legal fault (crimes anyhow out-of-terms going by 2010). In Appeal absolved Emilio’s son Nicola and further plant managers (among them some have been absolved as crimes became out-of-terms), while any reimbursement to civil parties have been rejected, while to the sole Legambiente and Associazione per Cornigliano have been recognized 2005 reimbursement for legal expenses.