Tata Steel completes sale of long products segment to Greybull

Long products Europe business renamed as British Steel

Tata Steel UK today said it has completed the sale of its 4.5-million-tonne of long products division to Greybull Capital. "As a responsible seller, Tata Steel is delighted to have secured a buyer for this business and we hope that under Greybull ownership, the business will continue the momentum of improvement programme that has been initiated in the last 12 months," the company release quoted Bimlendra Jha, executive chairman of the long products Europe business and chief executive officer of Tata Steel UK as saying.

In the last twelve months, long products Europe business has implemented a transformation plan, including a portfolio restructuring of assets, underpinned by committed support from employees and their trade unions. This has focused the business on higher-value markets supported by a more competitive cost base.

"Employees and trade unions have worked closely with the long products Europe management team to improve the business's prospects, putting it in a more competitive position than it has been for many years. It is through their dedication and hard work that we are in this position today in spite of continued challenges in the market," said Jha.

The long products Europe business, which includes Scunthorpe steelworks, two mills in Teesside, an engineering workshop in Workington, a design consultancy in York, and associated distribution facilities, as well as a rail mill in northern France, will trade under the new name of British Steel.

 

All together the business employs 4,800 people — 4,400 in the UK and 400 in France. The sale follows an accelerated process of negotiations between Tata Steel UK and Greybull Capital to achieve this outcome, said the release.

At 11:45 am, shares of Tata Steel were trading at Rs 337, up 1% from previous close on BSE.