Anglo-Dutch Corus accepts revised bid from India's Tata Steel
London/Amsterdam (dpa) - Anglo-Dutch steelmaker Corus announced late Sunday it was accepting a revised bid from India's Tata Steel that values Corus at 4.7 billion pounds (9.2 billion dollars).
Tata would pay 500 pence a share for Corus, topping an informal rival bid from Brazil's CSN of 475 pence, a statement from Corus said. Tata had originally bid 455 pence.
Tata Steel chairman Ratan Tata said: "We remain convinced of the compelling strategic rationale of this partnership and the revised terms deliver substantial additional value to Corus shareholders."
Corus chairman Jim Leng said the Corus board would recommend accepting the offer, which he termed "a substantial increase," to shareholders.
"Following the acquisition of Corus Group, Tata Steel will explore all strategic alternatives with a view to managing its financial exposure while enhancing the value of the acquisition through additional synergies," Tata said in a statement issued on Monday in New Delhi.
Corus and Tata have long been in talks about a takeover. Speculation of further consolidation in the relatively fragmented world steel sector increased after the merger of Mittal Steel and Arcelor earlier this year.
CSN (Companhia Siderurgica Nacional) had been expected to make a formal bid during the course of this week, ahead of an extraordinary shareholders' meeting on December 20.
A Tata-Corus link-up would create the world's fifth largest steelmaker, with annual production of around 24 million tons.
While Tata steel is relatively small, producing around 4.4 million tons of steel a year, the Tata group is one of India's largest conglomerates with interests ranging from tea to cars. Corus produced more than 18 million tons last year. © 2006 DPA
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