European metals technology companies want to lead anti-corruption fight

Primary crushing plant. Photo by Tenova.

Following the 2016 launching of the Collective Action Initiative for the Metals Technology Industry, the program announced today that it has added Techint Group’s Tenova S.p.A. as a new member.

Tenova is a mechanical engineering company for the steel and non-ferrous metals processing industry headquartered in Castellanza, Italy. The other three members of the initiative, Danieli & C Officine Meccaniche SpA, Primetals Technologies Limited and SMS GmbH, are based in Buttrio, London, and Düsseldorf respectively.

According to a press release distributed on Monday, the MTI Collective Action Initiative is facilitated by Swiss-based non-profit anti-corruption International Centre for Collective Action, which operates within the Basel Institute on Governance. The goal of the initiative is to provide a forum for the members to develop anti-corruption compliance best practices and ensure fair competition in the metals technology industry in the countries in which they operate.

In the media statement, Tenova’s CEO Andrea Lovato said that the objectives of the anti-corruption group fall within his firm’s code of ethics. “All companies in the metals industry face similar corruption risks around the world. We immediately saw the benefits of joining forces with other industry leaders in harmonising our anti-corruption management approach,” he said.

In reaction, Gemma Aiolfi, Head of Compliance, Corporate Governance, and Collective Action at the Swiss institute said that the addition of new members encourages others to continuously improve their anti-corruption compliance systems.