India's Jindal and Italian steelmaker Arvedi Group have submitted binding bids for Italy's former Ilva steelworks, opening the next stage in the long effort to find a new owner for the troubled industrial group.

The special commissioners overseeing the business said on Monday that the two offers had been received. They will now examine whether the bids are complete and comply with the requirements of the tender, according to a statement.

What the commissioners will check

Both bids cover the acquisition of all the active business assets, according to trade publication SteelOrbis, which reported the commissioners' confirmation on 9 November. No preferred buyer has been named, and no details of the sums offered have been made public.

The commissioners' review is the next step before any decision on the future of the company, which has been run under extraordinary administration after years of financial and operational difficulties.

A plant at the centre of Italian industry

The business, now known as Acciaierie d'Italia, is centred on the vast Taranto plant in southern Italy. The site directly employs around 8,000 people and is Italy's only integrated steelworks, making it a key part of the country's manufacturing base.

Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni's government has been seeking a buyer to safeguard steel production and thousands of jobs at the site, which has been run by government-appointed commissioners.

Court ruling hangs over the sale

The sale has been complicated by a Supreme Court ruling last month ordering the shutdown of blast furnaces at the site on health and environmental grounds. The ruling has left the question of production continuity unresolved as the bids are assessed.

The court decision followed years of legal disputes over pollution around the Taranto plant, where residents have long complained about the health effects of emissions from the steelworks.

Arvedi's electric plan, and the bidder that stayed out

Arvedi's bid envisages building a first electric arc furnace within two to three years, followed by a second, according to a person close to the matter. The plan would move the plant away from blast-furnace production over time.

Not every suitor stayed in the race. Michael Flacks, chairman of the US turnaround investor Flacks Group, told Reuters last week that he would not bid for the steelworks without a government commitment of at least one billion euros in financial support.

The outcome of the tender will shape the future of steelmaking in Italy and the livelihoods of thousands of workers in Taranto, where the plant has dominated the local economy for generations.