Tata Steel UK signs Rs 840 cr deal to sell unit to Liberty

Tata Steel on Thursday said it has signed a definitive agreement to sell Speciality Steel business in the UK to Liberty House Group for 100 million pounds (about Rs 840 crore).

The UK-based Liberty House Group, led by Indian-origin executive chairman Sanjeev Gupta, said the deal secures the future of around 1,700 jobs directly, and thousands more in the supply chain and regional economy.

UK business secretary Greg Clark said: "Acquiring Tata s Speciality Steels business in South Yorkshire and West Midlands, which manufactures high quality steel for some of the UK s world leading industries such as aerospace and automotive is a great opportunity for Liberty House.

"I look forward to hearing more about their expansion plans which secures skilled jobs at the business into the future."

"We want to work with the steel industry on proposals to transform and upgrade their sector as part of the modern Industrial Strategy so we can build on our strengths and extend excellence into the future," he said.

The sale follows an extensive due diligence period, after the parties entered exclusive discussions last November.

"This is good news for Speciality Steels and for Tata Steel s core business in the UK. Like our former Scunthorpe- based Long Products business which we sold last year, we will be handing over a business which has been transformed following difficult decisions to restructure and re-focus on higher-value markets," said Bimlendra Jha, CEO of Tata Steel UK. He also indicated that Thursday s deal offers better prospects for the Indian steel giant s largest steel works at Port Talbot in Wales, which is currently undergoing restructuring.

"Today s news also marks another important step forward in realising a more sustainable future for our Port Talbot based supply chain in the UK," he said.

The deal will make Liberty House one of the largest steel and engineering employers in the UK, with more than 4,000 workers at plants located across Britain's industrial heartlands.

Speciality Steels, which makes high-value steels for the aerospace, automotive and oil & gas industries, has manufacturing facilities in Rotherham, Stocksbridge and Brinsworth in South Yorkshire and Wednesbury in the West Midlands, as well as service centres located in Bolton, and in China. PTI