SARAJEVO, Aug. 5 (Xinhua) -- Negotiations over the fate of Bosnia and Herzegovina's (BiH) largest steel plant, Nova Zeljezara Zenica, ended without agreement Wednesday, as plant management, the Federation government, and the Metalworkers' Union failed to bridge differences on a crisis solution, local media reported.
The Zenica steelworks, the country's top steel producer and a major industrial employer, has been mired in heavy losses since late 2025 due to mounting debt and a disrupted coke supply chain. A court initiated bankruptcy proceedings in February this year.
The Federation government, which has been trying to avert the company's bankruptcy since early this year, proposed on Tuesday a full acquisition of the majority stake or operational takeover for at least three years to secure over 1,500 jobs at risk.
However, plant management said the government has offered no financial plan or capital strategy, arguing that the comprehensive production model demanded by the government is no longer viable, and the only path forward is court-led bankruptcy restructuring into a modern logistics and industrial park.
Founded in the late 19th century, the plant used to be the backbone of a mining-railway-finance industrial chain. Local media and experts have warned that its possible closure will affect tens of thousands of people's livelihoods and the very soul of Zenica as the "City of Steel" in the country.
