KOLKATA | MUMBAI: ArcelorMittal said it has formed a joint venture with Japan’s Nippon Steel and Sumitomo Corp (NSSMC) as part of its bid to acquire Essar Steel . Its Indian subsidiary ArcelorMittal India Pvt Ltd submitted a resolution plan for the Gujaratbased debt-stricken steel company on February 12.Under the agreement, both companies are poised to jointly acquire the Ruia family's steelmaking asset in Hazira, Gujarat, if ArcelorMittal’s bid is selected.ArcelorMittal and Numetal Mauritius have emerged as the two bidders for Essar Steel. Numetal is a special purpose vehicle (SPV) backed by VTB Bank, engineering agency Tyazhpromexport, both from Russia, and the Ruia family.“Partnering with NSSMC for Essar Steel has always been our intention and adds further strength to our offer,” Arcelor-Mittal chairman Lakshmi Mittal said in a statement on Friday. Sumitomo Corp had entered into a pact with Bhushan Steel in 2009 for sourcing OEM (original equipment manufacturer) steel sheets from the latter’s Dhenkanal plant in Odisha.The acquisition of Essar, if it does happen, will not impact its relationship with Tata Steel, the NSSMC spokeswoman told Platts. More recently, in 2014, ArcelorMittal partnered with NSSMC to acquire AM/NS Calvert, a downstream finishing facility in Alabama in the US.The facility has a 5.3-million-tonne capacity and is the largest newly constructed steel facility in the US.

Source: Economic Times March 02, 2018 21:22 UTC