Sanjeev Gupta evaluating bid for more Tata UK assets

Liberty House owner Sanjeev Gupta expects his company to create 150-odd jobs to get the two plants acquired from Tata up and running

Britain-based Indian tycoon Sanjeev Gupta has said his Liberty House group was evaluating a bid for other UK assets of the troubled Tata Steel after completing the acquisition of the firm's loss-making plants in Scotland.

Gupta was speaking as his firm completed the acquisition of former Tata Steel plate making facilities at Dalzell and Clydebridge in Lanarkshire, Scotland, on Thursday.

The deal involved a back-to-back transaction in which the Scottish government acquired the two plants from Tata Steel and immediately sold them to Liberty House.

The agreement to save the two plants was completed on March 24 and in coming months Liberty expects to create around 150 new jobs to get the plants up and running again. "We're very grateful for the valuable support of the Scottish government and the trade unions in concluding this deal. Our team are continuing to evaluate the opportunity to make a bid for other Tata UK assets," said 44-year-old Gupta, executive chairman of Liberty House.

"We're very pleased to announce that we have completed the deal to acquire Tata's plate mills in Scotland and we now look forward to continuing to work with local management and the workforce to re-build these great businesses in the months ahead," he said.

Scotland's First Minister Nicola Sturgeon said the government was "grateful to Liberty" to take up this "exciting opportunity in Scotland and for the energetic and speedy manner in which they worked with the Scottish government to help save these jobs".

"It has been a team effort which has paid off and once again the steelworkers of Scotland will produce world class products from Lanarkshire," added Scottish business minister Fergus Ewing.