The UK’s Teesside Cast Products (TCP) plant, which was mothballed last February and cost 1,600 jobs, is at the centre of sell-off discussions between its owners Corus, part of India’s Tata Steel Ltd, and Thailand’s Sahaviriya Steel Industries Plc. (SSI). SSI reported Friday that it had signed a Memorandum of Understanding to acquire the North of England plant for some £320 million ($500 million).
Announcing the news in the UK, Corus MD Kirby Adams told reporters:
‘We are very pleased to announce this significant progress in our long-held objective to sell the TCP assets to a strategic industry investor.’
SSI president Win Viriyaprapaikit said:
‘We have great respect for the tradition of steelmaking on Teesside and for the highly skilled Teesside workforce, having previously purchased slab from Teesside Cast Products.
'Corus is one of the best integrated slab production operations. I believe that our decision will lead us to be the leading steelmaker in Southeast Asia.’
If the Due Diligence study and separate discussions with the finance sector go to plan, it is expected that Teesside will see the resumption of steel making at the plant in the first half of 2011.
SSI’s share price rose by 16 satang, to 2.06 Baht, on the news during trading valued at 1.21 billion Baht.
