Jingye has a tough task of reviving British Steel given its many problems but it may have a bigger target in sight
After selling off its long products business, Tata Steel Europe is now planning to become a premium strip player and concentrate on improving its performance, a senior company official said today.
Earlier this month, Tata Steel had shortlisted seven bidders including US‘ steel giant Newcore Steel, Greybull Capital, Excalibur Steel, Liberty House, JSW Steel and Hebei Iron & Steel. The company‘s board, which is excepted to meet on Wednesday, will further whittle down the shortlist to 2-3 bidders from the above.
The proposed sale of its European long products (LP) division to UK-based investment firm Greybull Capital will help Tata Steel's long-term deleveraging plan, S&P said in a statement.
While government initiatives like minimum import price and safeguard duty are aiding revival of the sector, Akash Gupta, Associate Director at Fitch Ratings, says he would keenly watch out for demand growth indicators and how companies handle competitive pressures to maintain their utilisation rates.
Tata Steel Europe, the largest steel manufacturers in UK, in March had said that it is contemplating selling out entire operations from the country over recurring losses.
As per the deal, Greybull Capital will invest about 400 million pounds into Tata Steel's plants in Scunthorpe.
The deal, if it goes through, will be an investment-based deal than an all cash payout deal, says Rakesh Arora of Macquarie Capital Securities.
After a marathon board meeting in Mumbai, the steel giant said in a statement in the early hours of Wednesday that the financial performance of its UK arm had deteriorated substantially in recent months, after years of weak conditions.
The board of directors of the Indian multinational is expected to meet on March 29 in Mumbai to discuss whether to retain or sell the plants in Scunthorpe and Port Talbot in UK.
Liberty House, headed by managing director Sanjeev Gupta, had recently acquired a number of units of another UK-based steel firm, Caparo Industries, owned by noted NRI industrialist Lord-Swraj Paul.
Tata Steel UK, an indirect subsidiary company of Tata Steel Europe signed letter of intent with Greybull Capital to enter exclusive negotiations for the potential sale of its Long Products Europe business.
Britain's largest steelmaker has been trying to sell its long products unit, which makes steel used in construction, since last year - with increasing urgency as a global steel crisis intensified and prices hit decade lows.