Tata, Thyssen in high level talks on European steel joint venture

[FRANKFURT] India's Tata Steel and Germany's Thyssenkrupp are holding high-level talks on the possibility of combining their European steel operations in a joint venture, but are also looking at other options, German daily Rheinische Post said on Wednesday.

The newspaper said that under the model currently being discussed Tata and Thyssenkrupp would each shares in the joint venture proportional to the values of the businesses they were contributing.

It also said that Tata was very interested in Thyssenkrupp's Brazilian CSA steel plant.

Officials at both Thyssenkrupp and Tata Steel declined to comment on the report.

Following Tata Steel's announcement two weeks ago that it plans to sell its lossmaking British business there were renewed media reports that Europe's battered industry was set to undergo a long-awaited consolidation, starting with a merger of Tata's Dutch operation with Thyssenkrupp's European business.

A person aware of the talks had told Reuters at the time that Tata and Thyssenkrupp had been discussing combining their European steel operations.

Rheinische Post said on Wednesday that an agreement was not imminent, and that other options besides a joint venture were being discussed as well.

REUTERS